


It's a Family Thing

by MsPerception427



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Glee, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Blaine Anderson is Tony Stark's Son, Canon Divergence - Post-Avengers (2012), Clint Has Issues, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Domestic Avengers, Endgame Blaine Anderson/Sam Evans, Everyone Has Issues, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gen, M/M, Minor Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel, Noah Puckerman Has Issues, Noah Puckerman is NOT a Lima Loser, Not Kurt Friendly, Post- Glee Season/Series 03, Pre-Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Santana Lopez & Noah Puckerman Epic Friendship, Super Soldier Serum, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-20
Updated: 2018-04-28
Packaged: 2018-09-25 19:02:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 162,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9839738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsPerception427/pseuds/MsPerception427
Summary: As Iron Man flew towards the Chitauri portal he had only one person on his mind: his youngest son, Blaine Anderson. Blaine has always been Tony's best kept (read only) secret. He really should've known that one little phone call was going to change everything. But what he didn't know was that he wasn't the only Avenger whose life was going to change.





	1. It's So Hard to Say Goodbye

When Blaine Anderson was eight years old, he finally realized that something wasn't quite right with his family. Sure, they were nice enough but he never felt like he belonged with them. He always had a sneaking suspicion that he didn't really fit with them given that he didn't really look like them. Or it was more accurate to say that his father looked nothing like them. Blaine knew that he had his mother's nose and Cooper clearly had their mother's eyes. But neither of them had anything in common with their father. Anytime he tried to bring it to his mother's attention, she played it off or bought him a new puzzle or Lego set to take his mind off it. That, right there, was another thing. Unlike his parents who trusted the world around them, Blaine wanted to figure out how it worked. It took his mother six years to figure out that Blaine was naturally inquisitive and was prone to taking things apart so he could understand how they worked. That's when the Lego sets started popping up. He really wished that she wouldn't look so sad whenever he assembled one though.

When Blaine was ten years old, his brother let the secret slip. It was right after their maternal grandmother died. Blaine really didn't know her that well but Cooper did. He was completely distraught. His then seventeen year old brother was also completely wasted when he pulled Blaine to the side and told him that neither of them were the son of Stanley Anderson. Cooper's dad was some jerk that knocked their mom up and left while Blaine was the son of the man that rescued their pregnant, down and out mother… Anthony "Tony" Stark. Blaine brushed it off at the time partly because that was just ridiculous. Tony Stark was… well huge and famous and a billionaire. But it was mostly because immediately after that little confession, Cooper vomited in a plastic potted palm tree that he subsequently declared was his new best friend. He stubbornly refused to leave the newly named Stella for the rest of the night. So Blaine took Cooper's confession as the drunken ramblings of an already insane person and moved on.

When Blaine was just a few days away from turning thirteen years old, Tony Stark was kidnapped in Afghanistan and held hostage for three months. His name and face were all over the news for the majority of those three months. Blaine couldn't help but think back to Cooper's drunken confession (and Stella... yeah, he actually kind of missed Stella). But now that Tony's face was everywhere he went, Blaine couldn't help but notice the similarities between himself and Tony Stark. They both loved to build things. They had the same eyes and smile. The same inquisitive nature…. Blaine couldn't help but start to wonder if maybe he really was the son of Tony Stark. He didn't ask though because the man was missing, pretty much assumed to be dead. He didn't want his mother thinking that he was trying to lay claim to his wealth or anything like that. But then a miracle happened and Tony was rescued. Soon after his return, the media found something new to focus on and Blaine was left wondering if he was ever going to get an answer to his question. In a pure twist of fate, Blaine got his answer about two weeks after Tony was found when Tony Stark himself showed up at the Anderson household looking for Cooper and found Blaine instead.

Blaine remembered opening the door and staring up at the man in wonder. Once they were literally just inches apart, Blaine saw all the different things that he tried to brush off as just coincidence and knew he couldn't deny them anymore. This man really was his father…. And it appeared he was getting that memo too. Tony gaped at him for a brief moment before all but bellowing for Blaine's mother. She came rushing into the room, took one look at the recently discovered father and son and fainted. Cooper definitely got the melodramatics from their mother.

The facts were these: When Tony Stark was twenty one years old, after having added yet another college degree to his already impressive resume, he met a pretty young waitress named Annette. Annette with her lack of formal education and a baby on the way was the complete opposite of what his father would want in a potential daughter-in-law. Naturally, this meant that he had to fall head over heels in love with her. Tony helped raise Cooper and by all rights was the father that Cooper never had. He also helped Annette get the degrees she always wanted. But by the time they were twenty seven, they were half broken up. By the time they were twenty eight, Annette was bored with her life. She was bored of a life where her partner was more consumed with his gadgets, gizmos and robots than he was with her. She couldn't say that Tony was a bad father. He wasn't. But Annette wanted something more. So she left Tony, taking Cooper and the son that Tony wouldn't know anything about for thirteen years with her. Tony was still an active part of Cooper's life. Occasionally he would fly his former stepson back to New York or to Malibu for the weekend. But Blaine knew nothing about this. Until that afternoon when he was thirteen years old when he answered the door and learned that he was never really Blaine the son of Stanley Anderson. That he was actually Blaine the son of Tony Stark.

From that day on, Blaine and Tony formed a fast connection. Blaine didn't resent Tony at all for not being a part of his life before that moment. He actually appreciated the effort his father put into getting to know him. Especially since Blaine knew that it definitely conflicted with his Iron Man activities. Blaine was still a bit mind blown to know that his father was Iron Man but he was also proud. He read the horror stories in the tabloids. He knew what people thought about his father. But he also knew his father was a good man who tried the best he could. Blaine didn't take that for granted and he never wanted Tony to change. Well, that is until a month before the end of his junior year when aliens invaded New York and his loud insane amazing ridiculous genius of a father died saving the world.

____________________________________________________________________________________

This wasn't real. This could not be happening. Blaine fought the urge to rock back and forth as his eyes were riveted to the scene unfolding before them. It was insane. There were actual aliens and monsters fighting in the streets of New York. And his father was right in the middle of it. Pepper had called him the night before to give him a warning that his father was about to get involved in something very serious but he had no idea she meant this! This was… huge. This was nothing his father had ever faced before. A cold feeling settled in his stomach as he stood staring at the television with his boyfriend standing beside him and feeling smaller and younger than ever before. He felt alone even though he was in the middle of Rachel's living room surrounded by the rest of the glee club. They were supposed to be celebrating their win at Nationals but instead they were now watching in horrified fascination as actual superheroes were fighting back against aliens. Even knowing that his friends were with him, Blaine felt alone. Because he all he wanted in that moment was his father.

"Who are those guys?" Tina's voice sounded from somewhere around him. "I mean I know Iron Man but who are those other guys?"

"The blonde dude is an alien god named Thor. He's what all our ideas of Norse mythology are based on," Puck answered almost absently. Several eyes cut towards him. He shrugged with a knowing smirk on his lips. "I know things." Brittany nodded beside him as if in confirmation that Puck did in fact know things.

Blaine couldn't help but laugh at the brief moment of levity. Then he was back to freaking out internally because was that a missile on Iron Man's back? And why was he flying towards the giant hole in the sky that the aliens were coming from with a missile on his back?!

He felt his phone buzzing on his hip. He was tempted to ignore it. It was probably just Cooper. When the invasion started, Cooper insisted that he was coming home. He wasn't going to let Blaine be alone. He was grateful for the offer but he didn't need his brother giving him status updates every fifteen minutes on his commute home. But something told Blaine to at least check. He pulled the phone out of his pocket and felt his heart skip a few beats when he saw that it was his father. He was probably using JARVIS. Blaine picked up, clearing his throat to try to hide the evidence of tears. He moved away from the rest of the teens trying to get some semblance of privacy while also being able to keep an eye on the television.

"Hey, dad."

"Hey, kiddo. Quick question, have you ever tried schwarma? And if so, what the hell is it and is it good?"

"Seriously?" Blaine laughed softly. "It's Middle Eastern and its basically roasted meat, vegetables and bread. It's actually really good. You should try it sometime. I mean you are in New York City. I'm pretty sure there are like a thousand good places right by the Tower. Pretty sure you passed at least one this morning."

"Yeah, I should try it one day," Tony mumbled. "So what are you up to?"

"Oh, you know, just hanging out at a friend's house. Watching some news. There's an alien invasion happening in New York, did you hear about that?"

"So watching your old man, huh? Like my team?"

"I thought you didn't play well with others."

"I usually don't. But I found some special ones," Tony chuckled. Blaine felt happier at the sound of his father's familiar laugh. He felt less small… less alone. "They're kind of adorably neurotic and fun. Even Captain Amazing over there."

"So Grandpa Howard was right? Captain America is actually real? And he's still alive?!"

"Yeah, the legends are true. Still don't see the appeal."

"That blonde guy fighting with you, he's not a real god… is he?"

"Thor is something, alright. He's a pretty good guy to say that it's his brother that's causing all of this," Tony laughed again. But this time it sounded more like a sob. Blaine chewed on his lip. The dread was returning full force. "I guess I can't persuade you to turn the television off, huh?"

"Nope. What are you doing?"

There was a pause. "What I have to do, kid. It's the only way. I wish there was another… I have to do this, Blaine."

Blaine winced as he bit down on his lip. That sinking feeling was back. "You're not coming back from this, are you?"

"I don't know…. I don't think so. I'm so sorry."

"What for?"

"For not being there for thirteen years."

"It's okay, Dad. You didn't know about me," Blaine replied, the words coming out choked as he tried to stifle the sobs that wanted to come out. "But you've been there for the last four and it's been great. Wish we could have had more time."

"Me too, Blaine. Me too." The connection started to crack as Iron Man approached the portal. "Take care of your brother for me. I know he can be a pain in your ass but he means well. He loves you in his own Cooper way."

"I know and I will."

"Take care of yourself too. Pepper knows what to do. Keep in touch with her, will you?"

"Yeah, of course I will." Blaine ignored the tears rolling down his face as he watched his father enter the portal. "I love you, Dad."

"I love…."

His phone beeped as the connection was lost. There were several cheers as Iron Man guided the missile that was apparently going to destroy Manhattan through the portal. Blaine couldn't tear his eyes away from the screen. There was a shockwave from deep within the portal that showed that the threat was over. Iron Man did it. He saved the world. He was a hero. Blaine let out a low moan even as he found the tears coming faster. He tried to take a breath but found that he couldn't breathe at all. Watching his father disappear into that portal felt like a hard punch to the solar plexus. He blindly sat down on a chair behind him. His eyes still glued to the television. They were celebrating and Blaine never hated a group of people more. Tony didn't need to do this to be a hero. Tony Stark was already a hero to Blaine. He didn't need to die to prove that.

"Uh, Blaine, are you okay?" Artie asked, hesitantly. Blaine tore his eyes away from the screen finally to realize that the entire glee club was staring at him. Several of them were giving him understanding looks while some of the others were visually dissecting him.

He cleared his throat, idly brushing away his own tears and let out a shaky breath. "Yeah, I'm good. I'm fine."

"Bullshit," Puck countered. Blaine stared blankly at him. Puck rolled his eyes. "Dude, you just watched your dad fly into an alien portal. That's grounds for not being okay."

"Okay, great now can we please address the iron plated elephant in the room, please?!" Kurt started. His eyes were wide and incredulous. Blaine couldn't help but read the accusation in the blue orbs either. "Your dad is Tony Stark? Your dad is Iron Man?!"

"Yes," Blaine replied, sadly. "He was Tony Stark. He was Iron Man."

"Why didn't you tell us? Why didn't you tell me?!"

Blaine felt his jaw drop. "Seriously?! You're seriously asking me that right now? I just watched my dad fly through a friggin alien portal with a giant nuclear missile strapped to his back. I just watched my dad die to save the world. And you're actually upset because I didn't tell you about him before now?!"

"Look I know you're upset but don't you see how this could be a little shocking for me too?!" Kurt countered. Rachel groaned before grabbing Kurt's arm and dragging him out of the room. Thankfully, the rest of the teens got the hint that Blaine needed a moment and started to scatter. Well, not all of them took that hint.

He wasn't aware he was shaking until he felt a gentle hand on his arm. He looked up to meet Puck's gaze. The older teen gave him a hint of a smile before tapping the phone still clutched tightly in Blaine's hand.

"So I'm pretty sure that your dad has to have some assistants or staff or something. There's got to be someone that's around that would know what's going on."

"Yeah, give them a call," Sam encouraged from Puck's other side.

"What's the point? He's gone," Blaine mumbled, not bothering to look to the screen again. It was just the news team sharing their feelings about what was happening. As if Blaine cared. His dad was dead. He didn't care about anything right now. He slumped lower in his seat.

"Hogwarts, seriously? Like everyone knows how Tony Stark became Iron Man," Santana chimed in, draping herself along the back of the sofa with a feline grace. The sarcasm he would swear was born into her voice was gone. She looked... warm and friendly for the first time since he met her. While he was stuck staring at this new Brittany settled down in the space beside Blaine. "I think you most likely know the story better than us. I think it's safe to say that if he could survive that, he could survive a lot. Don't give up just yet."

Blaine took a deep steadying breath and nodded. He was Blaine Anthony Stark (or at least he was in his own mind). He wasn't built to give in. He was built to keep fighting. And he was going to do just that. He gave the small group a grateful smile before dialing Happy's number. When he didn't answer, Blaine dialed Pepper, feeling the frustration growing once again as she also failed to pick up. He kept going for the next twenty minutes as he reached out to almost every staff member even remotely associated with Stark Tower. Some of them answered. Some of them said that they honestly had no idea what was happening as they hightailed it out of the city as soon as the first alien landed. But most of them were just confused, scared and looking to him for answers. He hung up on those pretty quickly. He was about to try another number when his phone rang. He didn't recognize the number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, kid. Miss me?"

"Dad?!" Blaine yelled, standing up abruptly. He ignored Santana's indignant yelp as his sudden movement caused her to topple over. But he didn't miss the stream of muttered curses and Puck and Sam's muffled giggles that abruptly turned into yelps of pain. "Dad, where are you?"

"At the Tower," Tony answered.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. Just a little sore. And partially deaf," his voice sounding slightly muffled as he turned his mouth away from the phone to yell at someone near him. Blaine smiled at the barely audible response punctuated with a few laughs. "So how are you? You okay?"

"I'm fine. I didn't just die trying to save the world!"

"No, but you had to watch." Blaine swallowed.

"That was…. That was hard. But I'm okay now that I know you're alive."

"Good. But to tell you the truth, I could be better. You see as I was going towards what I assumed was my certain doom, I kept thinking there were only two things I really needed in that moment. And now that I'm not dead I really need those two things. "

"Let me guess, Pepper and schwarma?"

"Who'd you get your sense of humor from, kid? Okay, let me rephrase that, smart ass, there were only three things that I really needed in that moment. And because I'm certain you got your brains from your mother, let's set the record straight. You and your brother are at the top of that list." Blaine swallowed the lump in his throat. "So I know school is letting out in a few weeks. You think your mom would mind me spending some time with you? Maybe Cooper too."

"Who cares if she minds?" Blaine blurted out. "I mean, she's not around anyway. She and Step-Stan are backpacking through Europe or something like that. I'm not exactly sure where they are this time."

"Remind me to have words with your mother about her parenting techniques. They seem to be a bit… nonexistent. But anyway, I'll take that as a go for me to visit. I might be bringing some guests. I think we might have to lay low for awhile. We kind of destroyed Manhattan a little." He paused, listening to something on his end. "Fine, the Capsicle wants to say that I should be honest and that we destroyed Manhattan a lot! But I still blame Point Break and The Hulk for most of that by the way. Anyway, so yeah, I might be bringing some friends. That cool with you, kid?"

"Yeah, that's cool," Blaine answered, quickly. His smile faltered. "You're really going to come to Lima, Ohio to hang out with me?"

"Yes, I'm really going to go to Lima, Ohio to spend some quality time with my sons. And I'm apparently definitely bringing the rest of my team with me. I think we could all use a little downtime. Plus they're kind of fun."

Blaine snickered softly. His dad could never just come out and say that he cared. It was always a roundabout type of thing. Clearly something else happened with the rest of what the press was now calling the Avengers and his father was worried about one or all of them. Blaine smiled. His father was making friends. It was almost adorable.

"So I'll see you in a couple of days?"

"Yeah, I'll be there. I have to go take care of some stuff, including the bratty alien god shaped dent in my floor and then I'll be there with you."

Blaine smiled. "Awesome. See you soon." He heard voices on the other side of the line teasing his father before the connection was cut. But unlike before, Blaine didn't feel like a part of him died. Because his father was alive and he was going to be here in a matter of days to spend some time with his son… well, sons. Because no doubt Cooper was also going to stick around. Oh, well. He sat down again with a bright smile and feeling better than he a few minutes ago because everything was right in his world again.

"So he's alright?" Puck asked, flopping down beside him. Blaine nodded. "See, told you."

"He's Iron Man," Sam rolled his eyes, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world. Blaine snorted. "Also, did you say Captain America earlier? Does that mean that Captain America is real? That guy was the actual Captain America?!"

"Yes, that was the real deal," Blaine replied. "Kind of shocked about that one too. Dad always thought Grandpa Howard was full of it. Guess he was wrong." Sam nodded slowly and Blaine could practically hear his inner fan girl flailing out of happiness. He would definitely make a note to find a way to bring Sam around the team. He's sure his dad wouldn't mind. Actually knowing his father and the ongoing war that he had with Howard Stark's memory, Tony would probably actively encourage anyone or anything that would get a rise out of the famous Captain America.

"So Iron Man," Puck smiled, raising an eyebrow. Blaine opened his mouth but Puck shook his head. "Just teasing you, dude. I get it. I wouldn't run around telling everyone Tony Stark was my dad either. Being his kid doesn't seem like the safest position in the world. So I get why you didn't tell anyone. I'm just glad he's alive and stuff."

Blaine nodded, grateful for Puck's easy acceptance and kind words. "You're really calm about all of this. As we can see my own boyfriend didn't take the news that well."

"Good thing I'm not your boyfriend," Puck winked with a sly grin. "But like I said, I did actually know about that Thor guy. my cousin actually met him. The chick she was doing an internship with is like soul mates with Thor or something. I didn't really believe her at first. Guess I should've. Apparently rolling with superheroes runs in our family. Our great grandmother, Nana Peggy, used to tell us stories about Steve Rogers, the man who would become Captain America. Darcy always thought they had a thing. I just thought Nana Peggy was senile. But now I'm starting to think she might of have been right."

"Seriously, did everyone know that Captain America was really real but me?" Sam whined. Santana patted him on the head before diverting all of their attention to the door where Blaine could just make out Kurt's head peeking around the corner. Oh, he so didn't feel like dealing with that right now. He was still feeling a lot of emotions at the moment. Getting into a screaming match with his sometimes completely oblivious boyfriend was definitely not something he wanted to get into right now. But judging from the impatient look on his face, getting into was exactly what was about to happen.

"Guess I should go talk to him, huh?"

"You could," Santana drawled. "Or we could get the hell out of here and do something decidedly less lame than party with the same people we see every day."

"Like what?"

Santana shrugged looking over at her best friend. "Britt?"

"Bowling!" Brittany replied with another nod. Sam and Puck exchanged a quick glance before nodding in unison. Brittany squealed throwing her arms around both boys. "Blaine?"

"I guess… but how are we supposed to get past them? They're kind of blocking the path to the stairs. You know, the only way out of here," Blaine said, glancing again at the others that were still hovering just outside the door despite Rachel trying to direct them all away from the room.

"Easy, bro. This room actually has two entrances," Puck answered absently. "If we go out that door over there, it takes you down and into this weird ass corridor that actually opens up a little bit down the street."

"And you know this how?"

Puck rolled his eyes. "I've known Rachel since I was born. Whenever I couldn't crash at Santana's house, I used to sneak in here and sleepover on the nights my dad would get completely wasted. It was easier to be here than there. But then he moved out and…. Yeah." Puck trailed off once Santana put a hand on his shoulder. His eyes widened as if realizing that he said too much. He raked a hand through his hair even while Santana squeezed his shoulder lightly before retracting her hand. "So we bowling or what?"

"Yeah, bowling! Bowling is awesome. I love bowling. Bowling is….." Puck reached and slapped his hand over Sam's mouth.

"Shut up, Sammy."

"Shutting up."

Blaine laughed before following Puck's lead out the back door he had never noticed before that moment. Sure enough it did lead out into some corridor that probably had some awesomely interesting story to it (and not just the one where Puck and Rachel were adorable little friends). He grinned as the last few rays of sunlight hit his skin when they finally emerged on the street. As he strolled down the street following the bantering Santana and Puck, the giggly Brittany and an utterly starstruck Sam, Blaine couldn't help but feel settled for the first time since he arrived at McKinley. Though they rarely hung out together in school or out, Blaine couldn't deny that he felt attached to these people. Maybe it was just the fact that they readily accepted that his father was Tony Stark and didn't seem to judge him. But whatever it was, he knew it felt good to be out here, right now with them.

So yeah, he and Kurt were in a weird place. He felt his phone buzzing in his pocket and knew for a fact that it was most likely a pissed off Kurt. But he ignored it. Because his father was still alive and Blaine was about to go bowling with people that were not Kurt and his immediate friends. People that actually listened to him and helped him when he needed support the most. Sometimes you had to take the wins and forget about the rest of the crap. And he was all about forgetting the crap.

"So Blaine, Puck, whoever else knew the truth, tell me everything about Captain America. And I mean like every everything about him!"

Yeah, definite win.


	2. Hakuna Matata

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony and Blaine reunite and the gleeks meet the Avengers.

When Blaine woke up the next morning, there were several thoughts clamoring for his attention and struggling against the early morning haze that normally fogged up his brain. The first thing was that his phone was chirping loudly and, most importantly, annoyingly by his head. He managed to crack an eye open long enough to see that he had about 20 missed calls and texts from Kurt. It seemed that his boyfriend was less than pleased with his decision to skip out of the rest of the party in order to go bowling with the others. Blaine would feel bad about that but … he didn't. Last night was the most fun he had in a while. So yeah, definitely no regrets about that one. The second thing that he noticed was that his house smelled pretty freaking wonderful. It was almost like someone was cooking but that almost never happened here. His mother was definitely not the domestic type (hence why she was hardly ever home), Stanley was a disaster in the kitchen and Cooper somehow inherited some bizarre mix of the two of them. So that ruled out any member of his family (i.e. the only people that should be in the house right now). That of course explained his third observation. And that was that he was not in his bed alone anymore. He tensed before he finally caught a whiff of the familiar gasoline and grease smell that had his mind settling and body relaxing into the warmth beside him.

"Took you long enough to notice," a voice muttered. Blaine cracked an eye open to glare over at his father who was stretched out on the bed beside him. He had a couple of bandaged scratches on his face and there were bags under his eyes but he looked otherwise healthy. He looked alive. "You know, I pay your mother a small fortune a month in child support. What exactly is she using that money on? Because it's definitely not on home security. The Capsicle broke in here with no problem and he's been on ice for the past seventy years."

"You do know there is a key under the mat, right?"

Tony gasped in mock horror, his hand flying to his reliable, steadily glowing arc reactor dramatically. "This is the 21st century and you people still leave keys under mats?! What is wrong with you guys? Don't you know what kind of world we live in?"

"I know what kind of world you live in. But in my world, the most dangerous thing I have to contend with is the homophobic hockey team."

Tony tensed, the playful atmosphere dropping for a moment. "They're not still giving you a problem, are they?"

"What are you going to do? Threaten them with the suit?"

Tony nudged him on the leg with his toe. "Believe it or not, I don't use the suit for everything, brat. Besides I'm a billionaire. That means I don't have to fight my own battles. I would totally ask Natasha to do it. Beating up a bunch of ignorant mouth-breathing teenagers would probably be her version of Christmas. Oh, maybe Legolas will want in on that. God knows he's been a grumpy little archer since everything went down. Maybe beating homophobes might help cheer him up a bit."

"You're right. Your new friends do sound fun." Blaine yawned, sitting up somewhat. He sniffed the air again. "Seriously, who's cooking?"

"Lego... Clint," Tony replied. "He came in, took one look at your fridge, and almost had what I swear was a mini stroke before dragging Bruce and Steve back out to the nearest Wal-Mart where apparently they bought the entire grocery section."

Blaine grabbed his phone from the end table beside him and frowned. "It's barely six in the morning. How long have you been here? Also why are you here? I thought you said that you would be leaving in a couple of days."

"I lied," his father shrugged before draping an arm around Blaine's shoulders, pulling him close in their first hug in several months. It had been way too long since he saw his father. Too damn long. "Missed you, kiddo."

"Missed you too, dad."

"Seriously though, your security? It's crap. You might not have terrorists and aliens walking the streets, but this world has ways of creating dangers that you never see coming. I don't like you being unprotected."

"I know, Dad, trust me I know. It's just that Mom was not a fan of the original system I built," Blaine admitted, leaning his head against his father's. "I designed it to fire a non lethal jolt of electricity at anyone that was deemed to be a hostile threat to the safety and sanctity of the household."

"Okay, that sounded promising. So what was your mother's beef with that?"

"The system deemed Cooper to be a hostile threat," Blaine smirked. Tony snorted before elbowing him in the side. Blaine shifted away from him with a laugh. "Have you seen his commercials, Dad? They're bordering on abusively awful. It's not my fault that the system took violent offense to it. But anyway, Mom couldn't stand her precious Cooper being hurt in any way even though I would like to point out that he wasn't even hurt! There were no long lasting negative side effects after he regained consciousness so I don't know what the big deal was. Oh wait, yes I do. It's Cooper. So I got grounded and we put up that crap system we have now."

His father sighed. "Sometimes I regret being Iron Man. Mostly in moments like these. And also when flying into alien wormholes with nuclear missiles on my back."

"What? Why? You love being Iron Man. Aside from the aforementioned whole alien wormhole missile moments."

"Yes, but being Iron Man and having the whole world know about it, makes it a little difficult to also be a father. I don't want to bring you into my crazy world, kid. But I hate the idea of leaving you here with your mom even more."

Blaine chewed on his lip. He knew that this was a sensitive topic for his father… hell for him too. In the past four years, the idea of Blaine living with Tony had come up more than once or twice… a month. But the general consensus was always that it wasn't safe. Blaine had enjoyed a life of relative safety (minus encounters with homophobic jocks) but that was mostly because he didn't grow up with his father. Being around Tony would lead to a life in the spotlight that Blaine wasn't sure he was ready for. But he got that much closer to being ready every time he had to watch his mother fawn over her precious Cooper or his stepfather question not just his sexual orientation but also his fascination with machines because it was yet another reminder that Blaine was not his biological child. Sometimes Blaine would feel bad about how readily he accepted Tony as his father when he constantly pushed Stanley away. But then he would remember how Stanley kept him at arms' length just as much. Tony took one look at him once the paternity news was broken and was already plotting all the ways they could raise hell together. Yeah, Blaine didn't really feel too bad about referring to Stanley as Step-Stan.

"Let's not think about that right now," Blaine said, forcing cheer into his voice. He met his father's nearly identical brown eyed gaze and mustered a more sincere smile. "I believe breakfast is about to be served and I don't know about you but it's been months since I had a home cooked breakfast."

"Things like this really make me want to take Pepper up on her daily offers to punch your mom in the face." Blaine snickered.

"Have I ever told you that Pepper is like the best thing that ever happened to you?"

"Second best," Tony corrected. Blaine opened his mouth to ask what the first thing was but closed it just as quickly. Oh, yeah, right that would be him. Oh. "Alright, enough sap. Get dressed and get your butt downstairs. You have enough time to eat and meet and greet the others if I get Happy to drop you off at school."

"Awesome," Blaine grinned before bouncing off the bed. He then thought back to the previous day and the utter pit of depression he fell into until Puck dragged him out along with the others. He really wanted to do something to repay all of them but at the moment he had way of paying one of them at least. "Uh, dad? I have this friend who really helped me out yesterday. He actually doesn't live that far from here… you think Happy could pick him up too?"

"Sure," Tony shrugged. He then grinned slyly. "Look at you, making friends. Brings a tear to my eye, it does. I'm so proud of you, kid."

Blaine rolled his eyes before tuning his father out as he considered his outfit for the day. He looked up from his contemplation of a purple bowtie versus black when there was a soft knock followed by a head of curly red hair appearing through the slightly opened door.

"Clint wants everyone to know that breakfast is ready. I suggest we hurry. Banner's eyes are glowing green and I think he's about to consume the Hulk's weight in bacon and waffles. And despite Clint and Steve buying what appears to be the entire grocery section, I don't think they bought enough for that." She smiled softly at Tony's feigned gasp of surprise. "Look, let's all just be grateful Thor isn't here. Well he's not here yet. Because you know he's coming back as soon as that Loki business is settled. I think he really wants a rematch with the Hulk for that sucker punch."

Tony snorted before gesturing towards Blaine with his head. "Natasha Romanov, meet Blaine. Blaine, this is the infamous Black Widow."

"Oh, she's the one that infiltrated your office undercover last year," Blaine said. Natasha raised an eyebrow in Tony's direction. His father shrugged.

"Just because SHIELD doesn't know about Blaine doesn't mean that Blaine doesn't know about SHIELD. Besides he's my kid. He would've found out somehow one day. Hell, he figured out I was his dad before I did."

"Cooper helped."

"Was that before or after he threw up on Stella?"

"Before. And it's a shame about Stella. He really liked that plant. But I told him not to leave it out when Step Stan is smoking. He has no problems putting his nasty cancer sticks out on any available surface. Even plastic plant shaped available surfaces. It was a sad way for Stella to go but I'm not going to lie. The breakdown was epic."

"It was. Thanks for filming that by the way."

"No problem. Cooper's embarrassment is my pleasure."

Natasha snickered, drawing their attention back to the redheaded assassin. "I still can't believe you managed to hide not one but two sons from SHIELD. You, the same person who blurted out that they were Iron Man literally like a day after anyone found out he existed. I'm impressed, Stark. But are you completely sure that Cooper isn't actually your biological child? He acts scarily like you before Pepper tamed you."

"Oh god, what did he do now?" Blaine asked, already embarrassed on his brother's behalf. Because everyone knew Cooper had no shame… he really was a lot like Tony in that regard.

"The second he laid eyes on Natasha, he started hitting on her. When she shut him down, he turned his attention to Clint who also shut him down. Then he moved onto Steve who's too embarrassed and confused to do more than gape at him. Cooper's taking that as consent to keep flirting. It's nice to know he's flexible in terms of who he's sleeping with these days." Blaine laughed, already having a mental image in his head. Cooper was a shameless flirt. He was also very much not into labels about his sexual preferences. He was going to have a talk with his brother about not trying to bang any of the Avengers while they were here visiting.

"Like I said, he's definitely your son," Natasha grinned. "Anyway you have five minutes to get downstairs. Otherwise I'm letting Bruce have at it."

"You wouldn't starve my kid in his own house, would you?"

"Cooper already saved him a plate. That was mostly directed towards you, Stark. Get your ass in gear," Natasha called over her shoulder.

"You know you love me!"

"I tolerate you!" Natasha's retort echoed up the stairs.

Tony laughed, settling back on the bed. "I told Pep I was wearing her down."

Blaine shook his head at his father's antics. He smirked, knowing he looked more like his father in that moment than ever before. "Look at you, making friends. Brings a tear to my eye, it does. I'm so proud of you, dad."

"Get dressed, smart ass."  
_______________________________________________________  
It took only five seconds for Blaine to understand how and why his father clicked with these particular people. Dr. Banner, or Bruce as he insisted Blaine call him, was a more grounded and sane version of his father. Smart yet tortured by demons from his past as well as the literal rage monster he could become at the drop of a pin. But Blaine could see him slowly emerging from his shell as the older scientist listened to Tony and Natasha bickering between themselves while also trying to drag Clint into their conversation. Blaine was intrigued by the quiet archer. He was pretty good at reading people and he could tell that the quiet was a new thing. Clint looked like he was normally bigger than life. Blaine could tell that the archer still wasn't used to not voicing his opinions aloud and Natasha wasn't used to him being quiet either. Blaine could tell something serious happened to the agent based off the amount of concerned looks he was getting. But Blaine could also tell that Clint was going to be okay with time. In the half an hour he managed to spend with his father's new friends before it was time for Happy to whisk him off for school, Blaine witnessed the archer almost smile a few times as well as stifling a laugh behind his hands. Yeah, he would definitely be okay.

But of all of his father's new friends, it was Steve Rogers that truly caught Blaine's attention. From the minute he laid eyes on the literal embodiment of an American hero, there was something about him that seemed familiar to Blaine. It wasn't just the stories that Tony told him that were passed down from his Grandfather but something more. He didn't quite understand what it was about the man but he knew that the Avengers seemed to be practically moving into his house for at least a few weeks. He figured he had more than enough time to figure out what it was about the man that stood out to him. Speaking of time…

He pulled his phone out and dialed Puck's number. The older teen picked up on the second ring while simultaneously yelling at someone in the background. "Did I interrupt something?" Blaine asked, snickering.

"Nah, just people around here don't realize it's too damn early in the morning to be so freaking hyper! What the hell are you even so happy about anyway? We're just going to school, loser!" Puck retorted. His voice was slightly muffled as he continued to berate someone on the other end of the line. There was another burst of laughter from Puck's morning companion. Puck huffed. "I seriously hate you. Anyway, Blaine, what can I do for you?"

"It's actually what I can do for you. My dad showed up early. He got me a ride to school today and I know you don't live that far from me…. so I was wondering if you wanted a lift?"

"That sounds awesome and thanks for the offer but I can't. I'm not alone."

"Oh, you have to take your sister to school?"

"No, Sarah takes the school bus. What I mean is that Sam ended up coming over here after Kurt totally bitched him out when he got home last night. Carole and Burt are cool but they weren't trying to get in the middle of that. Finn naturally took Kurt's side. So Sam crashed here last night because things got really awkward."

Blaine winced. He probably should've known that Kurt was going to make life miserable for someone last night. And since apparently he couldn't get to Blaine, he went for Sam instead. He really should've thought about that but he hadn't. Well, he wanted to thank his friends for taking him out yesterday and now he could cross two of them off that list.

"So, bring him with you. My dad's car is big enough to fit the three of us, you know."

"Yeah, okay. That could work," Puck laughed quietly. "We'll see you in a few then."

"I'll text when I'm closer."

"Cool… and thanks, Blaine."

"No problem."

Blaine hung the phone up with a small smile on his face. Tony arched an eyebrow leaning closer to his son. "You sure this guy is just a friend? Or is he a boyfriend?"

Blaine rolled his eyes even as Clint threw a slice of toast at Tony. True to his code name, Clint's aim was accurate as ever and the buttered bread bopped the genius on the forehead before sliding down in a rather messy way. Blaine bit on his lip to hide a smile. Clint tipped his head in Blaine's direction before gathering up the dirty dishes. Tony narrowed his eyes at the archer but didn't retaliate or complain. Now that was interesting.

"And on that note, I think I'm going to tell Happy that I'm ready for school now."

"Oh no you don't, kiddo. I'm definitely coming with you now. I'm staying around for a few days and I want to get to know your friends."

"Dad, you never want to know my friends."

"Not true. You just never had any friends worth knowing." Blaine furrowed his brow as he tried to think of a counter argument for that one. There was none. Damn his life before McKinley was kind of sad. Tony flicked him on the arm. "Don't feel so bad. Besides Rhodey, Pep and Happy, I didn't actually have any friends worth knowing before these guys came along either."

Blaine nodded accepting the sentiment behind the words. Still he and his father shared a lot in common besides a lack of strong interpersonal communication skills. They were both sarcastic and emotion phobic. Blaine smirked, clapping his father on the arm. "That was quite possibly the sweetest thing I've ever heard you say, dad. Remind me to call Uncle Rhodey and let him know how you feel about him."

Tony rolled his eyes but smiled anyway. "Shut up and get in the damn car."

Blaine laughed and followed through with his father's command. He bid goodbye to the rest of the Avengers and followed Happy out to the car with his father following behind soon after. As they drove the short distance to Puck's house, Blaine couldn't help but feel that today was going to be a good day. And it only got better once he spotted Puck and Sam standing at the end of the driveway waiting for them to pull up. Blaine had to laugh as Puck tried his best to hold Sam back from all but hurling himself at Tony.

But if Sam's exuberant reaction to just meeting Tony was amusing, the spastic response to Tony's invitation to the two boys (and an extension to Santana and Brittany as well) to come by the house that afternoon just solidified Blaine's feeling that today was going to be an awesome day. He had his father (and his father's new friends) as well as new friends of his own. Blaine wasn't about to let the unresolved tension between him and Kurt as well as his father's curious reaction to Puck get to him. Although that last part was a concern. When they first got in the car, Tony kept staring at Puck. When he was finally called on it, Tony mumbled something about Puck seeming familiar but he had no idea why. But Puck didn't seem to mind, so Blaine let it go….. For now. He knew his father. He would either figure out who it was or he would lose interest and find something else to focus on. So Blaine let it go.

Happy let them out a few blocks away from the school. So far only the members of New Directions knew that Tony was his father and honestly Blaine was looking to make sure it stayed that way. And so they sacrificed getting dropped off at the door to protect Blaine's identity. Blaine didn't mind the short walk as they filled the time by teasing Sam for his instant descent into a fanboy in the presence of Tony. Blaine was enjoying the blush that filled Sam's cheeks as he loudly protested his friends' comments. He was totally caught up in the way that Sam's green eyes sparkled as he laughed despite himself at Puck's over the top reenactment of his first meeting with Tony. That might have explained why he missed that the parking lot of the school was a lot more crowded than usual. But he would've been an idiot to miss the gaggle of reporters that were suddenly in his face as they approached the front doors of the school.

"Blaine, Blaine, how old were you when you found out that you were Tony Stark's son?"

"Blaine, do you know where your father is now?"

"Blaine, how do you feel knowing your father saved the world?"

Blaine felt a chill race down his spine. They knew. They knew who he was. These reporters knew who he was. He glanced around the parking lot. There were news trucks from almost every single news channel he could think of. Not to mention the gawking students watching the scene with wide eyes. He felt overwhelmed. He was also frozen to the spot. How the hell did this happen? The reporters kept closing in on him until he finally felt two separate sets of hands gripping his elbows and pushing him through the still questioning reporters. The hands kept him moving until they were inside the school building. He looked up to see Sue and Will standing in front of them.

"Always knew there was something different about you," Sue murmured as she moved around the three teens and walked outside to yell at the reporters still clamoring to get in the school. Will motioned for Sam and Puck to bring Blaine into the choir room where they could have a modicum amount of privacy. They found Santana and Brittany already waiting in the room. Santana was pacing back and forth while Brittany was sitting lotus style on one of the desks. Both girls looked up when the boys arrived. Santana's scowl was all the indication in the world that they both knew and were less than pleased about the subject.

"What the hell is going on?" Puck asked once they were in the room with the doors locked. "How did the press find out about Blaine's dad?" Santana raised an eyebrow and glared in Puck's direction. It said something about the growing bond between the five friends that Blaine knew the usually fiery Latina wasn't pissed at Puck. Puck knew too as he merely nodded before frowning. "Oh, you're freaking kidding me?!"

"What?" Blaine finally asked. "Who was it?"

Brittany pulled him into a hug and whispered the name that Blaine suspected but had seriously hoped she would never say. "It was Kurt."

"No," Blaine protested, though he really didn't feel it. "Why would… why would he do that? To me? Why would he do that to me?"

"Jealousy? He's a spoiled asshole? He can't see past his own butt hurt feelings about not being in the know? Who knows who cares?" Santana hissed. "But I do know that Porcelain has been cruising for a serious beat down for years and I'm more than willing to give it to him."

Puck draped an arm around her shoulders. "Relax, Rocky. I'd say this is more Blaine's fight than ours, wouldn't you? Let's see what he wants to do before you start beating the world down."

"I totally would," Santana muttered against Puck's shoulder. He hugged her closer. "Why do you only hug me when I want to hurt people?"

"Why do you always want to hurt people?"

"Valid point. Continue hugging."

Blaine snickered softly at the slight return to normalcy. He took a deep breath and tried to settle his very rattled nerves.

"So what do you want to do, Blaine?" Will asked, crossing his arms over his chest. "I talked to Principal Figgins. He and Sue are going to make sure that the press is kept out of the school. You'll be safe here."

"No, I really won't," Blaine laughed slightly hysterical. "Because if reporters are here then that means a lot more people than just the school know. That means that any minute now…." he trailed off as his phone rang. "My dad is going to find out." His friends winced out of sympathy and moved slightly away to give him a moment to talk to his father. "Hey, dad."

"Hey, dad? Hey, dad? That's all you have to say? Your face is all over TMZ right now."

"Like father like son?"

"Kid, I normally appreciate your ability to laugh in the face of tragedy but now is not the time," Tony chided. "What the hell happened?"

"Kurt happened. Apparently he blabbed to somebody about you and now everyone knows I'm your son."

"I'm coming to get you. Pepper is already working on controlling the media. We can figure out how to slow the damage down at school."

"Dad, the damage is done. Everyone knows who I am already. Leaving now is pointless. It's not going to make anything any less insane. It's already out there on every media outlet known to man."

"It's not the media that I'm worrying about."

"I know. But it's cool. I've got my friends. Santana has already declared blood vengeance on Kurt. Pretty sure that goes for any other student that messes with me as well."

"Damn straight it does," Santana murmured. Puck snorted in agreement. Blaine grinned.

"I'm okay, Dad. I promise. I'm just going to suck it up and deal with the crap. It's not going to be any easier tomorrow. So I might as well deal with it now."

There was a moment of silence before Tony sighed. "I don't where you got this maturity from. Definitely not me or your mother but I admit I'm impressed."

"I think you underestimate yourself, Dad. But thanks."

"You try and stick out the day but if it gets too much for you to deal with, you call me. I'll be there to pick you up. And by you, I mean all of you. I'll definitely be there to pick you up this afternoon. And your friends are definitely coming with us."

"Yeah, they are," Blaine agreed, glancing up at his friends. "We'll see you at three o'clock." He paused. "And Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't blow up my house trying to upgrade the security, okay?"

Tony sniggered. "You know me so well. Oh, and tell your clique to come hungry. There are currently about two dozen cookies in the oven with plenty more rolling out. Apparently the Hawk stress bakes. This is really good to know given the high amount of emo he's going through at the moment."

"You have issues, father."

"No shit, Sherlock. I'll see you later. Go learn something."

With that Tony hung up and Blaine pocketed his phone once again. He felt slightly less on the edge after talking to his father. He knew that Pepper would have the media situation under control in a matter of hours. No, the real struggle was going to be school. And he thought that he just being openly gay and in the glee club was enough of a reason to be a target at school. Add in there the son of a billionaire genius superhero and yeah… this was not going to be pleasant. He glanced up at the four smirking teenage faces and faintly bemused teacher. Yeah, it wasn't going to be pleasant for anyone that messed with Blaine that day.  
_______________________________________________________  
Blaine sighed with relief as the final bell for the day rang. It had been rough but not nearly as terrible as he imagined. That was definitely due to the support of not only his self appointed quartet of bodyguards but also the unwavering support of most of the other glee kids. He had first period that morning with Artie, Sam, Tina and Rory. He already knew that Brittany, Santana, Puck and Sam were on his side but he was pleasantly surprised to know that Artie was as well. Artie didn't treat him any differently. Rory and Tina were slightly awed but for the most part willing to act as deflectors when the scrutiny of the other students got to be too much. And they weren't the only ones. For the most part, the other gleeks were definitely on board with pretending that nothing was different as well as fending off the rest of the curious student body. Blaine was quietly grateful but still more than a little excited for the final bell. He could finally leave the building without having to deal with the rest of the students.

"Finally, freedom!" Sam cheered jumping off the desk where he was previously seated keeping Blaine company in the empty classroom. Blaine managed a wan smile for his friend. "Why the long face? We made it through the day just fine. Santana only had to threaten one reporter. No one got detention or expelled. See it was a good day!"

Blaine snorted. "You're only like this because you're about to meet Captain America."

"It's only because we're friends that I will admit that… yes, yes I am. No shame in my game," Sam winked even as he danced towards the doors of the school. It was a much easier trip this time. They didn't have to deal with the throngs of gawking students that seemed to be following Blaine all day. They were more than halfway to the door when Blaine realized that he didn't have his history textbook. He really contemplated just leaving but they had their final that week. He couldn't afford to pass up one day of studying.

"Hey, I'll meet you outside," Blaine said, halting his and Sam's journey to the doors. The blonde gave him a quizzical look. "I left my History text in my locker. I'm just going to grab and meet you outside. Happy and Dad should be here any minute now."

"I'll come with you."

"Dude, I think I'll be fine." He threw a hand up in the air and gestured passively around the empty halls. "Everyone else has gone home already. I'll be out soon."

Sam sighed heavily causing his bangs to blow with the breeze. "Fine but if you're not outside in five minutes, I'm totally giving Santana clearance to come in here and get you."

"Agreed," Blaine laughed. "I'll be right back."

"Whatever," Sam grinned before resuming the journey to the parking lot while Blaine headed back to his locker.

He really wasn't surprised to find Kurt leaning against his locker. He was actually shocked that Kurt hadn't tried to approach him sooner. Then again, he doubted that would've worked. Rachel seemed to be as annoyed with Kurt as Santana and was keeping him on a pretty tight leash during the day. Only Rachel didn't seem to be around and neither were the rest of the Blaine protection crew. Didn't that just figure?

"Do you mind? I need to get in my locker," Blaine said flatly.

"Why are acting like this?" Kurt asked, though he did move away from the locker. "You've been ignoring me all day. What's wrong with you?"

"You're serious right now? You opened your big mouth to the wrong person and now the whole damn world knows about me."

"What's the big deal? Unless your dad was hiding you because he doesn't like you being gay." Blaine couldn't help the growl that escaped his lips in that moment. His hands clenched into fists as his side.

"That's the last time you say anything about my father. Don't presume that you have the only father that accepts you just the way you are. You don't know a damn thing about Dad."

"You're right. I don't know a damn thing about your father seeing as how I just learned yesterday that he is your father! Why didn't you tell me?! Don't you trust me?"

"Oh my god, do you even hear yourself when you talk?" Blaine asked incredulously. "Ever since yesterday, you've been making this about you. Newsflash, it's not about you. I watched my father almost die yesterday. Actually, scratch that. According to Captain Rogers and Dr. Banner he did die for a little while. And yet you, my supposedly loving boyfriend, have yet to ask me if I'm okay with any of that. Because I'm not. I'm not okay. So I'm so sorry that in the midst of thinking that I might down the only parent that actually cares about me that my first thought was not of you and your feelings about Tony Stark being my father."

Kurt let a slow exhale. "I'm sorry. You're right. It's just… I've told you things about me. I thought that you trusted me. But I was wrong. Because it might have been terrible timing yesterday but the fact still remains that you could've told me before then. I shouldn't have had to find out that way."

Blaine laughed humorlessly. "Either you're really dumb or you're being purposely oblivious but I guess I have to spell this out for you. My dad is a superhero. He's also super rich and used to make his money off of weapons manufacturing. It's actually the old family business. When my dad was growing up, he was subjected to numerous kidnapping attempts not to mention actual successful kidnapping incidents. He never wanted that for me or for Cooper. So he let us grow up in anonymity. Anonymity that you just sacrificed because you're butt hurt about not knowing something that you should be lucky that I even considered telling you in the future." Kurt opened his mouth to say something but Blaine cut him off.

"I see now that I was right to hesitate with telling you. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go. My dad is probably here already. And apparently there are cookies!"

With that Blaine spun on his heels and stalked away from his boyfriend. Though he seriously doubted that was going to be a thing much longer. He always knew that Kurt could be a little self centered at times but this? He tried to shrug the negative thoughts off and remember that today was supposed to be a good day. One little talk with Kurt and all of that positive cheer went right down the drain.

He pushed the double doors that led to the school parking lot with a world weary sigh. Maybe he should've stuck to his rule of not getting attached. Or maybe Kurt was right and he should've told him about his connection to Tony. He really was going to but there never seemed like a right time. And he just couldn't anticipate what Kurt's reaction would be.

"Guess I know now," he muttered. He idly scanned the parking lot for signs of a sign of Happy, his father or Sam. He didn't know why he bothered actually looking. He heard them long before he saw them. Sam's excited voice echoed across the nearly empty lot as did Santana's infectious and mocking giggles.

He strolled in that direction and was surprised to see Brittany, Santana and Sam standing opposite Tony and Steve. Happy was nowhere in sight and instead of the limo, his father was leaning up against the SUV he saw parked in the garage this morning. Interesting. As they were all occupied with laughing at Sam's fanboy antics combined with Steve's blushing acceptance, none of them noticed his approach. Well, none save for his father. Tony quickly abandoned his post against the car to move to Blaine's side.

"Why the long face?"

"Just talked to Kurt.

"Kurt, the guy you're dating?"

"Kurt, the guy that blew up my whole world this morning and still refuses to acknowledge that he was wrong in any way."

Tony hummed slipping an arm around Blaine. "Don't stress this too much, kid. I'm sure he'll come around eventually."

"I guess," Blaine murmured. He wasn't as sure as his father. He really didn't think Kurt was going to come around that easily. He also wasn't sure that he was going to care if Kurt did come around soon. He took a deep breath and focused on his friends. "Wait, where's Puck?"

"Oh, Coach Bieste wanted to see him," Brittany answered as father and son drifted closer. "Something about the last test he took."

Blaine and Sam immediately exchanged concerned looks. They knew that Puck was counting on getting a passing grade on that test. A passing grade meant that he had a chance to graduate. Brittany somehow made it through the grace of some deity and would be graduating after all. Blaine didn't know what it would do to Puck if he found out that he was the sole senior member of the glee club that wouldn't be graduating this year. He really hoped that Shannon had good news for Puck. He got his answer sooner than he thought. A few minutes later, the doors opened once again this time revealing Puck.

The older teen walked towards them with his eyes downcast staring at a piece of paper in his hands. Blaine couldn't read his expression. He didn't look sad but he didn't look happy either. He looked to Sam and Brittany to see if they had any indication. Both blondes were chewing on their lips anxiously. Great they were of no help. Finally Blaine settled on Santana. She was staring at Puck with narrowed eyes. Finally her lips twitched upwards and she clapped her hands together. Almost as if he were waiting for one of them to figure it out, Puck glanced up with the widest smile Blaine had ever seen on him.

"So guess whose graduating?!"

"Yes!" Brittany, Blaine and Sam chorused.

"I knew you could do it," Santana smiled at him.

"I'm glad you did because I honestly had no clue," Puck retorted, earning a smack on the arm from Santana and Brittany. He laughed and dodged away from the two girls. It was then that he noticed the two Avengers standing by the side. "Oh, hey. Right, hello Mr. Stark."

"I told you to call me Tony already," Tony said with a grin. "Congratulations on graduating, Puck. And allow me to introduce Captain Awesome. Steve, this is Noah Puckerman. Noah Puckerman, this is the Capsicle."

Puck stuck his hand out in greeting to Steve but the gesture was unreturned. Instead Steve seemed to be staring at him with intensity. Puck dropped his hand to his side and looked back at Steve warily. "What?"

Steve shook his head. "Oh, I'm sorry. It's just that… your eyes."

"What about them?"

"They just reminded me of someone that's all. Sorry. It's really nice to meet you." Steve held his hand out to Puck now and smiled brightly when the teen shook his hand firmly.

Out the corner of his eye Blaine could see his father staring blatantly between Puck and Steve. He could practically see the gears in his father's brain working over time. There was something about Steve and Puck that was grabbing Tony's attention and Blaine knew that he wasn't going to rest until he figured out what it was. Blaine made a silent prayer that all parties would emerge from this with their sanity in check. He watched as Tony continued to build theories silently before shaking his head as if physically dislodging the ideas. He clapped his hands together.

"Alright, let's get this party on the road, shall we?"

"Wait, where's Happy?"

"He flew back to Malibu to help Pepper with dealing with the whole I have a kid thing," Tony shrugged. Blaine gave him a look. "Whatever. All I know is that your delightfully insane cheerleading friend here has promised to teach Steve how to the use the internet. If this doesn't get Barton to laugh then I don't know what it's going to take. I tried just about everything short of startling Bruce enough to trigger a Hulk moment."

Blaine gasped in mock surprise. "Oh my god, you care! You actually do care about someone who is not me, Coop, Pepper or Uncle Rhodey!"

"Shut your filthy heathen mouth, I do not!"

"You so do!" Blaine countered with a maniacal grin. "I'm gonna start calling him Uncle Clint."

"You're out of my will!"

"Yeah right, Pepper will never let that happen."

Tony paused. "Why is it that my girlfriend likes my kid more than me?"

"Experience?" Steve suggested with a shrug.

Tony glared before pulling the car keys out of Steve's hands. "And just for that, you don't get to drive anymore."

"But you promised."

"Well that was before I remembered that we were driving with my kid and four other kids I'm responsible for while they're in my car. We all know how it ends with you driving. There might not be any icebergs around but there are plenty of ditches."

"I resent that, Tony. It was one time."

"That lasted for seventy years!" Tony countered, already climbing in the car and ignoring Steve's protests. Blaine cracked a smile as they continued to bicker. They saved the world just the day before but that didn't stop them from acting like children.

As he settled in the backseat between Brittany and Santana, Blaine felt his earlier happy mood returning. Despite everything, this was turning out to be a pretty good day anyway.

"And stop calling me Capsicle!"

"Don't let him get to you, Uncle Steve. It's just his way of showing that he cares."

"I will find a way to disown you, Blaine. Pepper is not the boss of me."

"Yes, she is."

"No, she…." Tony trailed off before sighing. "Yeah, she is."


	3. Fondue for Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Steve might not be a virgin and Blaine is a happy exposition delivering bunny.

When Tony Stark was twenty one years old, his first son was born. Okay, so Cooper wasn't biologically his but he was his son in every other way. Tony was there for all of Cooper's firsts: first words, steps and crushes. And even after Annette left him, Tony was there to hear about a lot of Cooper's other firsts. He loved Cooper and proudly called him his son. But it was obvious from the minute that Cooper opened his sky blue eyes that he would be his mother's son. And he was a carbon copy of Annette. Right down to the histrionics and delusions of grandeur. He loved the boy but damn he couldn't act.

But it was more than just his very, very bad acting skills (seriously, they were bad), Cooper was different in that he was content to accept the world as it was. He was fine with not knowing everything. While Tony may have had his fair share of daddy issues growing up (Oh, okay, maybe it was more than his fair share but whatever), he knew that he inherited Howard's innate sense of curiosity and the need to examine and disassemble. He never really got how fulfilling that must have been for Howard until he realized he would never share that with Cooper. He would never be able to replicate some of the few and far between happy moments he had with his father with his own son. And then he met Blaine.

When he was in that godforsaken cave in Afghanistan, there were only three thoughts keeping him motivated to not give in. He had to get back to Rhodey, Pepper and Happy. He had to be a better father to Cooper and accept the things that made them different. And most importantly, he had to shut down the weapons manufacturing at Stark Industries because he saw what his weapons could do and he couldn't live like that anymore. It took two weeks after he was rescued to get him on the path to making things right with Cooper, but he finally managed to make it to Lima, Ohio where Cooper lived with his mother, her new husband and their son. Cooper wasn't always the most forthcoming when it came to talking about his little brother. He would start to tell Tony something about Blaine but then he would get a distant look in his eye and quickly move on. He promised himself that one day he was going to go and finally meet the damn kid so he could figure out what the big deal was.

Whatever he thought he was going on with Cooper's brother it definitely wasn't what he actually found. He was definitely not expecting to open the door and find a teenager with his eyes, his smile and the same mop of unruly curls Tony used to sport before Rhodey introduced him to the wonder of hair gel. He could tell the kid was just as surprised to see him as Tony was but there was a hint of something in those eyes that showed that Blaine wasn't that surprised. Twenty minutes and a fainting spell (Annette really needed to stop with the damn dramatics) later, the whole story was out for everyone. Tony wasn't just a stepfather. He was an actual biological father to a son he knew nothing about for thirteen years. But fortunately, his son was, well his son, and he knew a little bit about him. It was pretty obvious five minutes after meeting him that Blaine got more than just his looks from his father. He also got his ability to pick up a subject in just a few days and master it.

From the minute Tony met Blaine for the first time thirteen years after he was born, he was in love. He would give up everything if the kid asked him to. Thankfully he knew Blaine never would. Blaine's equivalent of Disney World was going to his father's workshop in Malibu. Blaine was definitely his son. Right down to the inquisitive nature and awkward inability to form lasting connections with people. Tony admitted he was happy when Blaine told him that he made his first real friend later turned boyfriend in Kurt Hummel. He never wanted his son to follow in his footsteps. But then the more Blaine would talk, the more Tony would worry. It didn't sound like the relationship between Kurt and Blaine was… healthy. He didn't like how his son seemed to be changing himself to fit in better with Kurt. He worried about Blaine and he planned to address it this summer when the kid came to stay with him in Malibu. But it seemed like that was no longer an issue. He wasn't kidding earlier. He was proud of Blaine. He knew how hard it was for the kid to open up but it seemed like he found a good bunch this time around.

"So how many knives do you have on you right now?"

Tony raised an eyebrow and looked away from his bickering sons to Santana who was sitting on a window seat next to Natasha in the crowded Anderson (really Stark because he bought the damn house and his sons lived there) living room. Tony wanted to be surprised that Santana and Natasha clicked but he wasn't. He paid attention when Blaine talked. And every story he heard about Santana Lopez fit the description of a younger and less disciplined Natasha. It seemed the redhead was of a similar belief as she had taken to the young woman almost instantly. Tony made a mental note to watch that one a little bit more closely. He definitely did not want calls from other parents complaining about his team teaching their children how to better and more discreetly pack heat. He glanced around the room to see how the other teens were faring.

Brittany was harassing Bruce much to the amusement of Clint who was perched on the top of Annette's ugly ass china cabinet that was a present from her grandmother or something. Tony was not sad to see that thing go when Annette left him. The teen was poking Bruce in an attempt to meet the Hulk in person. Tony would be concerned about that but if Bruce could resist hulking out when faced with Tony at his most annoying, then he could definitely handle a teenage cheerleader. He then turned his attention to Sam, who was simply content with following Steve around. Steve, on the other hand, was focused solely on Puck. There was definitely something going on between them. Tony knew there was something about Puck when he first met the young man that morning. He seemed familiar in a strange way. And looking at him opposite Steve, that feeling only got stronger. There was definitely something going on there and Tony was not leaving Lima, Ohio until he figured it out. Hell, who was he kidding? He probably wasn't going to get to the end of the day without at least attempting to figure it out.

Thankfully he got an opportunity when it came time for the other teens to leave. Cooper offered to give them a ride back to their respective houses. Tony didn't bother to hide the laugh as Blaine ordered his brother to refrain from trying to sleeping with any of his friends. It was moments like this that made Tony really regret not getting the chance to watch the two of them growing up together. The last four years had been hilarious enough. He could only imagine the pair of them when they were very young. He shook off the thoughts. He had plenty of time to mourn his lost years with Blaine and Cooper later. Right now he had a mystery to solve.

"Oh, Capsicle, a word please?"

Steve gave him an annoyed look even as he headed in Tony's direction in the dining room. The younger/older man smirked in their leader's face. Steve narrowed his eyes. "What? Am I supposed to know what you're thinking, Stark?"

"Just wondering if you were always attracted to teenage boys or if this is something that started after you got thawed out."

Steve spluttered, turning several brilliant shades of red. Really, the man needed to loosen up already. At this rate, Steve's delicate 40's born sensibilities were more likely to kill him than an alien invasion or hostile foreign threat.

"Relax, Steve. I'm kidding, kind of. Just wondering what's up with you and Puckerman? You seem a little… obsessed with the kid."

"I'm not obsessed," Steve countered. "And why do you even care?"

"Because my son, who up until this day has made a total of one real friend in his seventeen years of existence, has decided that Puckerman and the others are his best friends for life. Fortunately this appears to be a mutual thing or else who knows what level I would have to sink down to in order make that a mutual thing. But at any rate, Puckerman appears to be near and dear to my son's heart and that makes him near and dear to mine."

Steve raised an eyebrow. "And the other reason?"

"This thing where I remind you of my father, that needs to stop being a thing."

Steve laughed. "Yeah, well, if it helps you feel better I can already see signs of you in Blaine."

Tony smiled softly. That kind of did make him feel better. "Well, the other reason is that when he first got in the limo this morning, I felt something about him. He seemed familiar. And then you were staring at him too. I was hoping that whatever you're feeling could help me understand what it was that I was feeling."

Steve looked hesitant for a moment before sighing. "There are a lot of little things. But mostly it's his eyes. They're the exact same shade of hazel as my mother."

"Oh," Tony mumbled. Steve nodded, letting out a slow exhale. "And you don't have any surprise siblings from your mother? Maybe the kid is a nephew or something."

"No siblings. I was the first and only for my mother. She died when I was really young. And she was an only child."

"Right," Tony hesitated with his next question. "You didn't leave behind any nine month packages… did you?"

"No!" Steve protested, looking more than a little offended. Though that faded into a pensive look and the flush was back in his cheeks. "At least I don't think I did."

"I thought you were a… you know."

"I am not having this conversation with you, Stark. But for the record, no I'm not. Peggy and I… but it was only one time!"

"One time is all it takes, Captain Can't Keep It in His Pants." Tony crossed his arms over his chest in thought. "So there is a possibility that this kid could actually be related to you."

"I thought about it, but there's no real way to tell. It's not like I can just call Peggy up and ask her, now can I?"

"Peggy? Like Peggy Carter?" Blaine asked as he passed the two chatting men on his way back from the kitchen. He had a glass of milk in one hand and a plate of Clint's double chocolate cookies in the other. Tony started to say something about ruining his appetite for dinner but vetoed that in favor of snagging a couple of the cookies. They were delicious. Blaine glared but let it go. "You were talking about Peggy Carter, right? That's Puck's great grandmother."

"Noah was related to Peggy Carter?" Steve asked, his voice tight.

"What do you mean was? He still is," Blaine replied, balancing the plate so he could steal a cookie off the top and bite into it. "He was telling us yesterday that once a year he would go with his little sister, Sarah, and their older cousin, Darcy, to visit their great grandmother. They would go with their Nana Sarah. That was Puck's grandmother. His sister was named after her and she was named after her own grandmother. Sarah is apparently a popular name in that family. Anyway, they used to go out there all the time but then his Nana Sarah died and Peggy got put in a home. So now they go to the nursing home every now and then. It all depends on when Darcy can take time off from being the 'world's weirdest intern' according to Puck."

"Sarah? She was named after her grandmother, Sarah?" Steve repeated with an unreadable expression on his face. Blaine narrowed his eyes but was distracted by his efforts to devour an entire plate of cookies before he even made it to his room. Tony really loved that kid. Then Tony picked up on what Blaine just said.

"Wait, Darcy, as in Darcy Lewis?" Blaine paused mid chew and nodded. "Darcy the Intern is also Puck's cousin?" Tony grinned, slightly enjoying the green tint building in Captain Perfect's face. "That's the girl that Thor told us about. The one that tazed him."

"Puck's cousin sounds awesome," Blaine mumbled. "Can't wait till she comes up for his graduation at the end of the month."

Tony snickered. She did sound pretty awesome. But there was a bigger picture that everyone seemed to be missing. "What are the odds that my kid ends up friends with the cousin of Thor's girlfriend's intern? And coincidentally they both happen to be the great grandchildren of your one night stand?"

"Wait, one night stand? You had sex with Puck's great grandmother?!" Blaine asked all mock innocence. He clearly knew where Tony was going with this. Damn, he loved this kid. "Well, it makes sense. Puck did tell us that his cousin always thought you guys had a thing. Guess she was right."

"Sounds like she was. Weird that of her great grandchildren, one of them has your mother's eyes and his kid sister is named after her grandmother, who also happens to be Peggy's daughter. That name, of course, being Sarah. And Sarah was also named after her grandmother. That's your mother's name too, right? That's a lot of coincidences. Don't you think, Capsicle?"

"I, uh, I," Steve trailed off before spinning on his heels and stumbling blindly out the dining room and towards the living room. Tony waited until the super soldier was out of hearing distance to give into the urge to giggle. He heard an echoing snicker beside him.

"You're still a jerk, dad."

"I try, kid. I try." Tony sat down at the table and pushed a chair out for Blaine in an unspoken invitation to sit. "So I've been thinking."

"Did you hurt yourself?"

"Definitely got that sense of humor from your mother and no, brat. As I was saying, I've been thinking. This little break is fun so far and I think it's only going to get more fun. But eventually I'm going to have to go back. I think based off our little performance that they're going to want the Avengers to be more of a thing…. and personally, I think that it should."

"Careful, your caring is showing again," Blaine teased, reading between the lines of what his father wasn't saying… per the usual.

"You're so annoyingly mine," Tony laughed. "What I'm saying is that…. maybe you should come back with me. You can pick where. Malibu or New York, it's up to you entirely. But maybe you should leave with me. Finish off school wherever."

"You serious?"

"Yeah, I mean the world knows who you are now. What's the point of continuing to try and hide you now? They obviously know where you go to school. And seems like every time I turn my head your mom and stepfather are off on some globetrotting adventure. It's not safe for you to be alone anymore. Especially not with your crap security."

"How did you have time to think about this while also harassing Uncle Steve?"

"I'm excellent at multitasking."

"You're excellent at something," Blaine retorted with a grin. Tony countered this by stealing another one of his cookies. The plate was getting a little empty. Served the brat right. Also there were like a hundred more left in the kitchen. They really needed to address Clint's obvious mental health issues before he baked them all into a diabetic coma. But one step at a time. He would deal with their archer in a minute.

"So what do you say? You want to try living with your old man?"

"Will there be cookies?" It seemed that Tony wasn't the only one who spoke volumes in a few words. Tony understood exactly what Blaine was asking.

Tony paused, really thinking that one through. He knew when he made this offer to Blaine that it wasn't going to just be an invitation to live with him. He was inviting him to have a chance at a real family. And that included his apparent new favorite uncles. Tony smiled softly.

"Yeah, pretty sure there will be cookies."

Blaine nodded thoughtfully. "Let me finish up the school year. I've got until the end of the month. We can talk about it then, okay?"

Tony was more than fluent in his son. He knew that the kid was definitely moving in and really only going to use that time to figure out a way to drag his new friends with him. Tony was strangely alright with that. He leaned forward, ruffling his son's ungelled hair. He was briefly reminded of the thirteen year old that was lost in his own skin. Blaine came a long way from that. Now he was seventeen and had friends that actually seemed like him for more than just the superhero family member. Tony really was proud.

"We can definitely talk at the end of the month. Now go finish your homework or something." He reached forward and stole the plate with the remaining three cookies. "And stop ruining your appetite for dinner. Apparently Bruce is making some kind of stew. It's a recipe he picked up on the run that only he, Natasha and Clint even begin to understand. I don't exactly know what it is but it made Natasha start drooling. So it's got to be good."

"Sounds awesome. I'll be back down in like an hour. I think I'm pretty ready for my history final but I just need to go over my notes again." Blaine paused. "You think Uncle Steve will be over his potential Maury moment in time to answer some questions about the war?"

"Probably not but we can force him to talk. After all what are uncles for, right?"

Blaine laughed and picked up his glass of milk. He also pulled a cookie from god only knew where. The kid smirked before sauntering out the room. Yup, Tony may be incredibly and totally biased but he was pretty sure that kid was the best thing he had done with his life so far.

Tony sat back in his seat and smiled. The irony of the situation was not lost on him. He was barely considered an appropriate candidate for the Avengers Initiative in the beginning. He honestly didn't care at the time. He didn't work well with others. He was self-absorbed and probably a whole bunch of other psychobabble terms. But then aliens invaded New York and now he was holed up in Lima, Ohio with a bunch of superheroes (one of which he didn't even think was real) and his sons. His sons who he managed to keep a secret for so long but had no qualms discussing with people he met less than a week ago. At the time all he was thinking was that he needed to talk to Blaine. He thought he was going to die and he couldn't do that without Blaine knowing for sure that he was loved. Tony knew that Cooper knew but Blaine….

That's how it started but Tony still didn't mind. He was stuck in this bizarrely domestic situation where he was getting to meet his son's friends and giving his sons a few new uncles and an aunt. It seemed so Twilight Zone but when the director of SHIELD personally requested that you get the hell of dodge as soon as possible and kindly take the shattered remains of the agency's best archer with you… well, you tended to do just that. Even if you were Tony Stark because even Tony realized that he owed Fury a huge one after he gave him the tools he needed to save his life. But even if Fury hadn't asked, Tony would've offered once he saw the look of devastation on Clint's face after Natasha broke the news about Phil. It wasn't the look of someone who lost an associate or even a friend. It was the look of someone who lost the closest thing they had to family. In that moment, Tony was able to see past Clint's devil may care attitude and emotional boundaries to see that he was actually younger than he first appeared. It wasn't hard for him to imagine a similar look on Blaine's face just a few hours before. That's why he didn't hesitate to gather the remaining Avengers, load them in a van and use the Quinjet Fury had waiting for them to fly to Lima. He wasn't even surprised to find Happy waiting for them when they landed. SHIELD might not have known about Blaine but Nick Fury clearly did. And Nick Fury was very good at keeping secrets.

Tony figured that Fury was hoping that some down time would help Clint cope and ultimately deal with everything. Especially downtime away from the World Security Council's judgment and the damnation from the rest of SHIELD. Tony was actually starting to hope for the same thing. From the brief flashes that he'd seen over the course of the day, pre-Loki Clint Barton was someone who could probably match Tony in terms of sass and snark. He would do what it took to help get the archer back to that. Even if that meant letting his kid refer to him an as uncle when he was probably the same damn age as Cooper. Wait, actually….

"Exactly how old are you, Legolas?" Tony asked, tipping his head back. There was a shuffle slightly above his head. He glanced up to meet a pair of gray blue eyes just over the edge of the fugly china cabinet. "Well?"

"How'd you know I was up here?"

"Never saw you come down," Tony shrugged. "How long you planning on hiding up there anyway?"

"Until I feel like coming down."

"Fair enough. So I assume you heard about Steve's potential baby mama drama. Any insight?"

"I think it's a definite possibility. Every agent who's been through the Academy learns about Agent Carter and the role she played in starting SHIELD. She did have a daughter she was raising as she and your father were building the agency. But she never disclosed the father's identity. Most people assumed at the time that she was Howard's kid but then you were born and that got ruled out."

"What did I have to do with that?"

Clint gave him a look. "I know that you and your dad had issues. Trust me, I definitely get the whole daddy issues shtick. So believe me, I get it. But from what I hear, no one at SHIELD was aware of that. Your father talked you up big time. He barely acknowledged Agent Carter's kid. And by that point, she was married with a couple more. SHIELD lost track of the daughter a years before Agent Carter retired and the only person left that actually cared about the mystery was Fury. He's the one that told me about it."

"How long has Fury been involved with SHIELD?"

"No idea," Clint laughed faintly. "Anytime I asked, I got lectured on respecting my superiors or whatever crap Fury pulled out of his ass at the time." He shook his head. "I guess if we're all still dying to know, I could call Darcy and ask her if she knows anything about this whole Steve and Puck thing."

"You met her?"

Clint shifted some more but Tony was able to see more of his face once he settled down. "I was actually there during the whole Thor thing. I saw him trying to lift the hammer. I was part of the team that confiscated Dr. Foster's research."

"Oh, you mean stole."

Clint glared at him though the corners of his lips twitched. "Yeah, well, I introduced myself to Darcy after she stole her iPod back from Phil. I mean its Phil. He's only second to Nick and some intern managed to steal her iPod back. That was worth an intro. She seemed cool and then when Selvig ended up working with SHIELD, we kept in touch. I gave her updates on Selvig and she kept met updated on the outside world."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "And here I thought you and Spider Chick were a thing."

Instead of taking offense or rising to the bait, Clint merely smirked before jumping down from the cabinet. He didn't sit at the table but rather on it. They were really going to have to work on his not touching the floor thing he had going on. But first….

"What? Why are you smirking?"

"Nat really hates being called Spider Chick."

Tony gave a halfhearted chuckle. "Guess it's a good thing she's not around then, huh."

"Oh, she's around. Here's one thing you should know up front, if you see me, assume she's not that far behind."

"That's both adorable and mildly terrifying." Clint shrugged, looking relaxed for the first time since he met him. Tony took that as a cue to keep pressing. "So you ever going to answer my question?"

Clint's brow furrow. "I believe I did."

"Not that one. The first one I asked. How old are you?"

There was a pause. Tony really thought he wasn't going answer him. And then…. "I turned twenty seven a few days ago."

"Wait, a few days…."

"Yeah," Clint replied, effectively shutting down that conversation.

Tony ran a hand through his hair. "That really sucks. Rough birthday."

"Understatement."

"What did usually do on your birthday when you weren't being brainwashed by a bratty alien god with daddy/brother issues?"

"Well, before SHIELD, I didn't do anything. It never seemed like anything worth celebrating. But after I joined…. Phil… he didn't see it that way. He thought it was important and he wouldn't let me ignore it like I always did. We always celebrated it together. Sometimes he would invite Nick and this other agent, Melinda. And of course Nat was there once she joined our little team."

Tony made a mental note to ask Natasha what they did to celebrate Clint's birthday in the past so they could at least try and make it up to Clint.

"So how long have you been in SHIELD? You're kind of… well… young."

Clint snorted. "Doesn't feel like it sometimes. But to answer your question, I was recruited when I was maybe a few months older than Blaine. That's when Phil showed up in nowhere Middle America and dragged me out of a jail cell. He promised me a chance to do better. At that point anything was better than the twenty five years I was facing."

"A jail cell?"

"Yeah, I robbed a bank with a bunch of carnies. I was not exactly SHIELD's ideal candidate. But Phil didn't care about that. He pulled me out and he wouldn't give up on me no matter how much I threw at him. Although I'm pretty sure that he and Garret had a bet going on. They each went out and found the biggest screw-ups they could possibly find so that they could turn them into agents. Garret found Ward in a juvenile detention center too. He was there after he burned his family's house down."

"Ward sounds charming."

"Ward is a jerk. There is something a little off about that guy. Then again, he had Garrett as a mentor. Garrett is the epitome of a sociopath. Something is actually off with that guy," Clint replied. He sighed. "So yeah, that's my story. Phil recruited me, gave me a chance to be someone and I repaid him by letting him die. This is hands down, without a doubt the worst birthday ever. And that includes the time that my dad got drunk and murdered himself and my mom."

Tony flinched at the bitterness he heard in that voice. Clint Barton was very far from okay by any stretch of the imagination. Still, he seemed to be making an effort at talking and being social. And he was opening up a little.

"I know you're probably going to lie or brush it off but… are you okay?"

Clint looked down at his hands before meeting Tony's waiting gaze. "I've been better." He glanced down again before sighing. "Thanks."

"For?"

The archer waved a dismissive hand around the room and shrugged. "All of this. I know that Fury asked you to get me out of there. You didn't have to take us here. You could've dropped us anywhere but you…. Thanks."

"Dude, this has nothing to do with you. I just wanted to see my kids."

Clint snorted. "Yeah, thanks anyway."

Tony patted him on the knee, knowing that he had reached a milestone with the agent when he wasn't immediately put down for daring to touch him. "You're welcome, Barton."

"I actually have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"Why exactly does your son keep calling me Uncle Clint?"

Tony raised an eyebrow. He didn't know that Blaine had actually managed to call him that to his face. His kid was all sorts of awesome. Tony patted Clint on the knee once again before pushing away from the table and rising to his feet smoothly.

"It's because you are his uncle. You, and Steve and Bruce and most likely when he finally gets around to coming back, Thor too. Deal with it." Clint let out a slow breath. Tony was getting faintly familiar with Clint. He knew the archer wasn't upset more like confused. "What's wrong?"

"It's just that... Barney, my brother, we didn't exactly get along after awhile. I don't know he could have a kid by now but I wouldn't know but the thing is... I don't know. It's just that... What exactly does an uncle do?"

Tony stifled the urge to smile at the embarrassed rambling, knowing how much it was costing Clint to keep opening up. He also knew how lucky he was that Clint was opening up to him in the first place. "Hey, don't stress it. Just keep doing what you're doing. Blaine… he's different than Cooper. He's my mini me. He doesn't make friends easily. But when he feels comfortable, he latches on and won't let go. You don't really need to do anything extra with him. But based off our earlier conversation, he might not be the only person calling you Uncle. You might want to get used to it."

"Oh," Clint exhaled, clearly in thought.

Tony gave him one last fond look before leaving him to his thoughts. He was halfway to the room he claimed as his own while they were staying with Blaine when he heard a warm chuckle behind him. He whirled around, only mildly surprised to see Natasha following him.

"You did well with him, Stark," she said, somewhat smiling. "But understand if you ever call me Spider Chick again, I'll rip your balls off and beat you with them." She spun on her heels and walked away towards the kitchen. He could already smell whatever deliciousness Bruce had planned for them cooking.

He knew that this was all going to hit him soon. Not only did people outside of Pepper, Rhodey and Happy know about Blaine and Cooper, the whole world knew. That's in addition to the fact that he died just the day before saving the world from aliens alongside an alien god, two master assassins, the metaphorical albatross from around his father's neck and a giant, green rage monster. And now he was sitting in the house he bought for his ex and living a scarily domestic lifestyle. Yeah, it was all going to hit him and the fallout would likely be epic. But for the moment, he was just content to roll with it. Well, except one thing.

"So going to get that woman a damn bell or something."

"I'd like to see you try!"

Damn it!


	4. Change (In the House of Puckerman)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Puck has an existential crisis over graduation tickets, Clint bakes a cake and Steve finally acknowledges the obvious.

Its funny how drastically life can change in just one week. A week ago, Puck was on friendly yet not close terms with Sam and Blaine while working on slowly repairing his neglected friendship with Brittany and Santana. A week ago, he didn't think he had a chance in Hell of graduating. A week ago, superheroes were things that in only existed in comic books and movies and Darcy's excited beer fueled ramblings. But that was a week ago. Now he was like best friends for life with Sam Blaine, Brittany and Santana. He was definitely graduating high school. And he has spent almost every afternoon for the past week with a group of superheroes. Oh, what a difference a week can make. Too bad it couldn't change his family situation. Nothing short of a miracle or an act of god was likely to change that one. And despite having the above mentioned superheroes around, none of them appeared to be gods (though he would look into that once Thor came back).

"What's wrong?"

Puck snapped out of his thoughts, not at all surprised to find Santana standing in front of him. They were the only pair in the otherwise empty choir room. Everyone else had long cleared out but he knew that Sam, Brittany and Blaine were most likely waiting for them as they had every day for the past week. Puck straightened up, shocked that his thoughts had kept him behind so long that Santana Lopez had to come after him. Then again, he wasn't really. This was Santana. She knew him. And he knew her. Right now, her brow was furrowed with concern but the hands on her hips told him everything he needed to know about trying to lie to her. So he didn't. Besides, it hadn't worked since they were in the fifth grade. And even a mild estrangement in high school couldn't change that.

"I picked up my graduation tickets this morning."

Santana's expression melted in one of understanding immediately. He loved that she knew him that well. There was only one other person in this world that got him but he had long ago put a stop to thinking about her. He made a promise after all. And he wasn't going to go back on his word even if it broke his heart a little every day.

"Darcy is coming, right?"

"Yeah, of course. She put this down on her calendar before I even thought I was graduating. She's even bringing her boss, Jane. But that's it. My own mother isn't even coming because she just doesn't want to. Sarah could care less about what I do and won't go unless Mom makes her. And she won't. I don't know where my dad is but I hope to god he stays there. Aunt Liz can't get off of work. Sammy and Blaine are already supposed to be sitting in the Hummel-Hudson section. And you and Britt will be up there with me. So I have eight tickets and no one who remotely gives enough of a damn about me to give them to."

Santana let out a soft sigh before wrapping her arms around his shoulders. He reciprocated, resting his arms around her waist and hiding his face in her hair. Santana let out another quiet breath. "It's their loss, babe. Because you're freaking amazing." He felt warmed by her words because he knew that she meant them. Santana was painfully honest and definitely not in the habit of boosting anyone's ego. Even his.

"Why do you only hug me when I'm questioning my self worth and value to the world?"

"Why do you always question your self worth and value to the world?"

"Valid point. Continue hugging."

Santana snickered and then pulled away slightly. Her hands sliding up his shoulders to cup his face gently. "You listen to me, Noah Puckerman. It doesn't matter if you have two or ten people there on graduation day. The thing that you need to take away from this, that you need to hold on to, is that you made it. You did this. You sucked it up and asked for help and managed to get through this hell we call high school. No one can take that from you. Not even your drunken bitch mother or waste of flesh father."

Puck gave her a small smile. "I did make it through, didn't I?

"Yes, you did," she stood on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss against the corner of his lips causing him to smile somewhat. He really missed this closeness. "Now come on. Natasha sent me a text earlier. Apparently Clint totally baked the most amazing chocolate cake in the history of ever and he won't let anyone have any until we all get there despite their best efforts."

Puck raised an eyebrow. "That already sounds insane."

"Oh yeah," Santana drawled, threading her arm around his and steering him out the building. "Let's see, so far Tony has tried everything from straight up begging, whining, extortion and will likely soon be trying to create some awesome mecha thing to get the cake and ultimately destroy it in the process. There was an almost Hulk moment until Clint bought him off with chocolate chip waffles. And Steve tried to just straight up steal the damn thing."

"How'd that work out?'

"He took a paint tipped arrow to the knee."

Puck laughed feeling some of his earlier dark thoughts fade away. It got a little brighter when they made it outside and met the others. Bruce was their designated pick up for the afternoon and he was standing by as Brittany and Blaine were trying to do… something with a rock, fire and Sam. To say that Bruce was the so called voice of reason, Puck observed that he could be just as insane as the rest of the team. And he was definitely indulgent of anyone related to or otherwise associated with the name Stark. Even when (or maybe especially when) it ended with things blowing up or people being set on fire. Because Sam's jacket was definitely on fire.

"It's stop, drop and roll, Sammy!" Santana jeered. "Not stand around and flail."

Puck rolled his eyes and bypassed his flaming friend and the slightly panicked Brittany and Blaine in order to snag the front seat in the SUV. He glanced out the window to see Blaine trying to put the fire out while the others just stood around and watched. They were insane and random. But somehow in the course of a week, they had become damn near his whole world. He didn't really understand what it was that made them so important but he knew that they were. He needed the four of them in his life.

As they neared Blaine's house, or the Avenger's Mansion as Sam had been calling it, his bad mood abruptly returned in full force. He could feel the tickets weighing down his pocket. He knew he was being ridiculous. First of, they were barely filling up the small envelope they were handed to him in. There was no way they were heavy enough for him to feel. And second, Santana was right. It didn't matter if Darcy and her friend were the only ones that showed up…. Except that it kind of did.

Puck drifted through the front door of the house and straight out the back, missing the concerned looks he earned on his way out. He didn't want to bother anyone with his bad mood and he knew that he couldn't shake it off much longer. So he settled down on the bottom of the porch steps and finally gave into the intensely dark mood that had been clinging to him since he was first handed that stupid envelope earlier in the day.

As it stood, he was the only gleek that wouldn't have most of their family there. Hell between his and Kurt's tickets, Finn still needed more. The fact that he immediately (and without a hint of remorse or concern) turned to Puck to demand his extra tickets since, "you know you don't need them" just proved to Puck how far gone that particular friendship was. Thankfully Rachel had intervened telling Finn that Puck's tickets were his to do whatever he wanted with. Even if that was let them go to waste because no one but his cousin and her friend would be there. Finn looked like he was going to argue more but Coach Bieste intervened (bless her heart) and found an excuse to send Puck out of the room and away from Finn before he exploded… or cried. It really could go either way these days.

He didn't even know why he was so disappointed. He knew that his family situation left a lot to be desired. His mother worked ridiculous hours and when she was home, she was definitely not in the running for mother of the year. His father was the textbook definition of the term dead beat dad. His little sister alternated between hero worship for her big brother and total and complete disgust with his entire existence. Her moods shifted so rapidly he had no idea who he would be dealing with when the bus dropped her off after school. Lately she seemed annoyed with his continued need to breathe and live, so yeah, she was definitely out. His father's mother died two years ago and was probably the only grandparent he had that would've shown up in the first place. And don't even get him started on the rest of his aunts, uncles and cousins (thankfully his mother had no family to continue on the hating on Noah theme that his father's side of the tree was so fond of doing). Darcy was the only one he talked to, both by choice and because they wanted nothing to with either of them.

Yeah, his family life sucked and in less than three weeks, he was going to have a visual reminder of just how much it sucked. Maybe he could just ditch the ceremony. Maybe he could… eat cake?

He blinked at the sudden chunk of cake that appeared in his hands. He peered up, shielding his eyes with his free hand against the sun to see Clint standing above him. The archer looked pointedly at the cake and the fork waiting in his left hand. Puck did as he was silently told and almost forgot that he was supposed to be sad as the first bite of chocolate touched his tongue. Clint snorted as the content moan that escaped the teen and then plopped down on the back porch steps beside him. Puck turned to face him.

"Where did you find time to learn to cook like this between assassination jobs and fighting off aliens?"

Clint smirked. "Believe it or not the whole alien part is pretty new. So really it was just regular old killing bad people gig before. But to actually answer your question, I learned kind of all over the place. My mom loved to cook and I helped her out as much as I could when I was a kid. Then when Barney and I were at the carnival, Delilah and Debbie, the Siamese twins, helped me get some baking in. They made a mean apple pie. But I guess when I really got into cooking was…. Phil. He, uh, liked to cook too. So yeah, guess you could say that I learned here and there." Clint shrugged. "Plus it helps with stress."

Puck took another bite and nodded thoughtfully. "Not that I want you stressed or anything but I have to say that your hobby kind of rocks and I'm thoroughly enjoying reaping the benefits of it."

Clint let out an amused huff of air and leaned back so that his elbows were resting on the steps behind them. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"What helps you with stress?"

Puck picked at the slice of cake. "It used to be music. But that's been reminding me of… a friend that I kind of don't get to talk to so much these days. So I guess I have nothing. I liked drawing when I was a kid but my dad burned all my art stuff when I was seven. He said only 'fags like to draw'. Then he signed me up for football."

"Your dad sounds like a real piece of work."

"He's something."

Silence fell over the pair as Puck continued to eat his cake and watch the setting sun. Finally Clint growled in frustration that morphed into confusion as Puck started laughing.

"Finally going to get to the point, then?"

"You knew?" Clint asked with narrowed eyes and the beginnings of a smile.

"Don't take this the wrong way but you don't seem like the type to randomly strike up conversations without having a reason to. Not to mention Santana and Sam keep looking out the living room window. Reasonably sure that Dr. Banner, Mr. Stark and Blaine are doing the same from the kitchen. I think Natasha is watching too but I don't know if that's concern for me or for you." Puck thought about it. "Probably both."

Clint made a pleased little humming noise even as he nudged the teen with his elbow. "You're good. And you're also right about all of the above. So you want to tell me what's got everyone so worried about you? You're starting to brood more than me. That's a problem."

Puck laughed weakly and shrugged. He then placed his plate to the side to fish out the envelope that had been ruining his day since he got it that morning. Clint raised an eyebrow as he looked at the brightly colored pieces of paper.

"Graduation tickets," Puck murmured around a sigh. "We get ten to give to our friends and families. but I essentially only have two people that like me enough to want to go and one of them doesn't even know me!" he looked away to stare off at the horizon. "It's stupid, I know. Everyone has a lot more serious stuff going on and I'm whining and crying about some stupid graduation tickets."

Clint shifted in place. "But it's not really about the tickets, is it?" Puck looked away, focusing on the horizon once more. His jaw clenched even as he struggled to find the words to answer Clint's question. Finally he let out a slow exhale.

"No, it's not."

"It's about feeling like you're nothing and then finally getting validation that maybe you're not as big of a lost cause as you thought you were. It's about being disappointed that the ones who doubted you and made you feel this way won't be there to see your moment of triumph. You're not upset about the tickets. You're upset because the people that made you feel like you were nothing refuse to go to the one that would prove you were something."

Puck swallowed against the sudden lump forming in his throat. "Yeah… it's, uh, it's exactly like that." He turned to fully face the agent. "How did you know?"

"Don't let this total picture of mental health and emotional stability fool you. It wasn't that long ago that I was exactly like you. My parents died when I was young but before that my dad… he was a piece of work too. Not really sad he's gone. But after that we got placed in one foster home after another and every one of them broke us a little more until we finally escaped to the carnival. I learned how to shave from a bearded lady. A clown taught me how to drive. A lion tamer helped me with my homework."

"Dude, none of that last part even remotely resembles me."

Clint threw him a look, shaking his head. "Is this how Phil feels when he was talking to me? God, he's right. That is annoying as hell."

"You keep mentioning him but who is Phil?"

"Phil is… was… my handler. He's the one that got me out of a jail cell and told me that I could do or be anything I wanted. He offered me the tools I needed to get that done."

"He sounds nice. What happened to him?"

"The invasion," Clint replied shortly. Puck took the hint to leave that topic alone and nodded for Clint to continue. The archer tilted his head in acknowledgement and moved on from thoughts of his deceased handler. "Point is that I know how you feel because before I met Phil I felt the same exact way."

"But you were still different. You had the carnies to help you do all that stuff. I learned how to shave on my own. I learned how to drive by pretending to be Santana's blind friend that she had to take along with her when she did her driver's Ed lessons because I couldn't afford my own." Clint gave him a look. Puck shook his head. "People in Lima aren't really that bright." Clint nodded. "Anyway, there was no one to help me with my homework. I don't have anyone," Puck's voice cracked on the last sentence. He knew it was the truth. But he never said it out loud. It kind of hurt a little. More than he thought it would for some reason.

"I fought so hard to graduate and for what? I didn't apply to any colleges. I'm never going to get a good job because everyone in this stupid town knows I got arrested so even though my juvenile record will be sealed eventually, they all know and will hold it against me. So I'm going to be stuck in this town working some below minimum wage job until I snap just like my father. I'm going to be just like him like everyone said I would. I really am a Lima loser."

"I have no idea what a Lima loser is but I can kind of guess a little. Doesn't matter anyway. You're not a loser. No one can make you a loser. Only you get to decide if you're a loser or not. You want to get out of this town? Then get out. Leave. Doesn't exactly sound like there is anything keeping you here."

"Where am I supposed to go?! Darcy is still in school. She keeps offering to let me live with her but I can't do that to her. Nana Peggy's other kids hate me and Darcy, so they're out. I have nowhere else to go. And it royally sucks because in a few weeks, I'll have no one in this town but Sammy. Blaine is probably going off with his dad when you guys leave. Santana is going to Kentucky for school. Britt somehow got into MIT, which yeah, I don't even profess to know how that happened. So it's just Sammy. And I can't do that to him. I can't be a burden on him when he's trying to graduate."

He ran a hand through his hair, not surprised that they were faintly trembling. He was surprised when Clint placed a hand over his. He looked up to meet Clint's serious gaze.

"When I was only a little younger than you, I was asking myself those same questions. Who am I? What am I going to do with my life? Because I didn't really see a lot of options presenting themselves to me. Especially after my brother…. yeah, after him. So I took the easy way out and I pulled an armed robbery. Of course it went terribly wrong and ended up with me shooting the guard. And that in itself was a mindfuck. But I got arrested and was facing a minimum of twenty five years for armed robbery and attempted murder. That is until Phil showed up like a nerdy, Super Nanny watching angel and got me to join SHIELD. But Phil isn't here anymore so I'm going to be that guy for you. Minus the Super Nanny. That show is weird. You couldn't pay me to watch kids like that. I'd probably just shoot them."

Puck chose to ignore that last part, mostly because he totally agreed (those kids were definitely hell spawn) but also because really? Clint was actually suggesting that he should apply to SHIELD? Puck supposed that must've showed on his face as Clint rolled his eyes. Puck huffed in frustration. Why couldn't the older man see that Puck was definitely not SHIELD material? He was barely worth this pep talk.

"Why the hell would SHIELD want a dumb kid that barely managed to graduate and has a juvie record?"

"One, you're not dumb!" Clint said, whacking him on the back of his head. "Two, what would they want with a sixteen year old with an actual adult criminal record and an obsession with a medieval weapon that didn't even finish the sixth grade? I have no idea why they wanted me. I don't know why they took me and kept me. But hey, look at me now!" Puck couldn't help the laugh at Clint's dramatic spread arms and bright grin. "I could tell you how you're so much more than what you think you are but we both know that's not really going to sink in just yet. So I'm just going to say besides the whole almost didn't graduate thing, there is a very important reason why SHIELD would be damn lucky to have you. And that, kid, is that SHIELD is in your blood."

"You talking about Captain Rogers?"

Clint gave him an appreciative look. "Okay, you're definitely not dumb if you're picking up on stuff like that. But no, I'm not touching that whole situation with a ten foot pole. I was actually talking about your great grandmother… your Nana Peggy. She founded SHIELD with Tony's father, Howard. Kind of fitting that you and Blaine are directly related to the founders and you managed to find one another and become friends."

Puck picked at a loose string on his jeans. "You really think I could be an agent of SHIELD? You really think SHIELD would want me?"

"You would make a great agent and not just because you're Peggy's great grandson. But because you're smarter than you think. You're observant and you care. You make mistakes but you own up to them and take responsibility. You take care of the people that mean the most to you. All of the above is what is going to make you a good agent. The fact that you're more like your great grandmother than you think is what's going to make you a great agent. Stop selling yourself short, kid. You're going to be great. I would stake my very tarnished reputation on that fact."

Puck gave him a wan smile that grew a little brighter when Clint handed back the cursed envelope with a card bearing Nick Fury's contact information on it. Clint rolled to his feet smoothly and stretched. He glanced down at Puck with a raised eyebrow.

"Just promise me that you'll think about it, okay?"

"Yeah," Puck nodded absently, staring down at the card. "Yeah, I will."

"Awesome," Clint started through the back door when he noticed something by the doorway. "Seriously?! Can you please just talk to him? Have a conversation already! Because honestly you're starting to weird me out. And I have a very high tolerance for weirdness."

Puck didn't bother to turn around. He already knew who Clint was yelling at. So instead he picked up his long neglected cake and waited for Captain America to work up the balls to talk to an eighteen year old kid. Surprisingly, given the amount of times Steve started to say something just to walk away before he managed to speak, Puck only had to wait for a few more minutes. Then there was the quiet bang of the screen door closing, shuffling almost nervous footsteps and finally a warm, heavy weight was settling next to him. Puck glanced at him out the corner of his eye.

"I wasn't… you know, listening to you guys," Steve started.

"You would've been the only one. It's okay if you did though." Steve nodded, his fingers twitching reflexively trying to find something to distract him from the nervousness. Puck took a deep breath. "When we first met, you freaked out about my eyes. Why?"

"They reminded me of my mother's eyes. Actually your eyes are pretty much identical."

"Oh," Puck replied, touching the corner of one eye absently. "I'm the only person in my family on both sides with hazel eyes. My mom and dad both have brown eyes. Same with Sarah. My grandmother said that she and my little sister might have gotten their names from her grandmother but I got her eyes. Since none of us have ever met, I had to take her word for it."

"That is interesting."

Puck snorted. What is with the Avengers and being afraid to just say what they were actually thinking? These guys were the ones that defended the planet just two weeks ago? They were Earth's Mightiest Heroes? Earth might be a little screwed.

"So, is the part where you tell me that you think you're my great grandfather or are we going to keep dancing around the topic for the rest of our lives? Because I have to tell you, I don't have that kind of patience."

Steve tensed before letting a shaky breath. "Uh, I really don't know for sure. I think I am. I kind of feel like I could be." He glanced over at Puck. "Would it be a bad thing if I was?"

Puck thought about for a second before shaking his head. "No, I don't think it would be. It would be a little weird since you look like you're a minute older than me. But not bad."

Steve laughed. "Clint was right. You really are a lot like your great grandmother. You're practical but you have imagination."

"She sounds like she would've been fun. I didn't really get a chance to know her that well before was diagnosed with dementia. But from the stories that Nana Sarah would tell when we visited, she sounded like a really nice lady."

"Your Nana Sarah… she died?"

"Yeah," Puck replied, sobering somewhat. It wasn't just the thought of his beloved grandmother but also what it meant for Steve. The man just woke up after a seventy year nap to find out that almost everyone he cared about was either dead or barely capable of remembering what day it was much less an old lover from the forties. Then he found out that he probably had a daughter… that was dead. And all he was left with was a delinquent loser great grandson. Yeah, this definitely really sucked for Steve.

"How did she die?"

"Cancer," Puck said. His voice still quiet. "It happened really quickly too. One day she was diagnosed and a few months later… she was gone. But she and Nana Peggy made up before she died. So at least there was some peace there."

"Yeah," Steve murmured. "She was your father's mother?"

"That's right. Nana Sarah had my dad, Aaron and before that Darcy's mom, Elizabeth. There was some… tension between Nana Sarah and her mother. They fell apart and by the time Nana Peggy found her she was 16 with two kids. Nana Peggy had gotten married during that time as well and she had a couple of kids too. I think I have at least two aunts and uncle."

"Why don't you know for sure?"

Puck shrugged. "They really didn't look too favorably on my grandmother. And their kids just picked up on their stupidity. So we avoid that side of the family. Besides I got Darcy. I don't need anyone else."

"I'm glad that you have Darcy. It sounds like you two are really special to one another."

Puck cracked a smile at the thought of his cousin. They were very close. They both knew what it was like to have less than stellar parents, especially fathers. At least Darcy's mom was somewhat checked in to what was happening with her daughter. That was probably the only thing preventing Darcy from following the family tradition of being a teenage parent. Man, this really sucked for Steve. He had to be related to the loser side of Peggy's family. Her other kids and grandchildren and great grandchildren were all Ivy League educated. Darcy was the first to graduate from high school on their branch of the family tree. He almost didn't. He almost let her down. He almost let Steve down.

"Noah, uh, can I call you Noah?"

"Family usually does."

"Right," Steve grinned, sitting up straight. "Well, I heard you talking about your graduation and I was hoping that you would let me have a ticket. I would love to be there for you. If that's okay."

"Even if it turns out you're not related to me?"

"You're still Peggy's great grandson and you're still someone that I'm happy I'm getting to know. So yes, even if we're not actually related, I would really like to be there."

Puck fought the blush he knew was spreading in his cheeks and the face splitting smile but it was all for naught. Captain America wanted to go to his graduation. Captain America actually wanted to be there to support him. That totally beat his non involved parents. He picked up the envelope marveling that earlier it felt like a ton but now it was light. As he opened it, he found that it actually was lighter. He originally had ten tickets. He set aside the two for Darcy and Jane but that still left eight tickets. Now there were only four in the envelope. What the hell?

"What's wrong?"

"I had ten tickets. Two were for Darcy and her friend, Jane. So there should be eight in here. But now I only have four left. I don't understand."

Steve shook his head. "Clint really needs to work on expressing his emotions. I believe that your family section isn't going to be as empty as you thought it would be."

"But why did he take four…." Puck trailed off as he counted off the remaining Avengers. Tony, Bruce, Clint and Natasha… that made four. They were going to go to his graduation. They actually cared about him and wanted to go. Oh.

"I wouldn't stress it too much," Steve said, pocketing his ticket. "I mean I've only known him for about a week, but even I can see that Clint is really fond of sleight of hand tricks as well as really bad at expressing himself verbally."

"I was literally sitting next to him the whole time. I definitely didn't see him switch the tickets out. He's good. I wonder if he would teach me how to do that if I joined SHIELD."

"You're thinking about joining SHIELD?"

"Uh, yeah? I know that Nana Peggy helped build it with Blaine's grandfather… so yeah, I thought maybe it could be a thing. Unless…."

"No," Steve blurted out, shaking his head. "No, it's a good thing. A great thing actually. I'd really like it if you joined. Maybe both of us being in SHIELD will help us to really get to know each other. Maybe you could even help with this whole twenty first century thing because I'm definitely still lost. And Tony has offered to help but he can be a bit... overwhelming sometimes. I think I need someone a little less... Stark. You think you can help an old man out?"

Puck grinned wider than he thought possible. "I would love to help… Pops." Steve pulled a face bringing a brighter smile to Puck's face. "Gramps? PopPop? Grandpappy? Papster? Bubba? Bubster? Buzz? Chief? Adda? Baba? Ace? PapaDaddy? Papa Eagle?"

"Wait, Papa Eagle?"

"You know because America."

Steve laughed shook his head. "Exactly how many of these names do you have? And did you seriously just come up with all of them right now?"

"My brain is a strange yet wondrous place," Puck retorted. "The names and possibilities are endless. I could go for days."

"I'm strangely looking forward to it," Steve laughed. It was a warm sound. Bright, cheerful and so obviously fond of Puck. It wasn't something he was used to hearing but Puck found that he really wanted to get used to it. He really wanted to get used to having a relative that cared (and not just Darcy... god, he couldn't wait to tell Darcy all of this!)

Steve stood up, stretching as well before holding out a hand to Puck. He took it without hesitation and let his possibly, okay, definitely maybe great grandfather pull him to his feet and into a tight embrace. Puck sighed as he felt Steve's arms lock around him. It was weird how he automatically felt comfort and safety in that hug. He automatically felt like this man was family. Even if somehow they weren't related, which let's face it, they so were, Puck knew that he had family in Steve. It was a strange yet awesome thought. Not unlike the feeling he had whenever he was around Santana, Blaine, Sam and Brittany.

"I'm glad I found you, Noah."

"Me too," Puck whispered. "G Daddy."

"No," Steve said, pulling away with a frown. "I am definitely vetoing that one right now."

"I thought it had a nice ring to it."

Steve rolled his eyes and pushed Puck in front of him into the house. He was promptly tackled to the floor by his equally worried friends. Steve neatly sidetracked the puppy pile of teenagers now gathered on the living room floor and walked towards kitchen. Puck could already hear Tony picking up the game to name his newly minted great grandfather. He kind of liked the Geezer Guy one. Popzie had a nice ring to it too.

"Wait, why are you guys snuggling me?!" he asked, drawn back to the fact that none of his friends had yet to move away from him. They were actually getting more comfortable. What the hell?

Sam lifted his head to look him in the eye. "Because we wanted you to know that we care. All of us. I didn't know you were feeling that way about graduation. Dude, you know I would've been there in your section. I was only sitting with Carol and Burt because they asked. I'm definitely not a fan of either Kurt or Finn right now."

Puck belatedly winced. It hadn't gotten better for Sam at the Hummel-Hudson household either. He was pretty much officially just living at Puck's house now. Of course they were all pretty much living out of Blaine's house and occasionally going home to sleep. But out of the past week, they had spent the night three out of five days. As he glanced at the clock on the wall, he found that today was going to be one of those days probably. And he also found he didn't care. He wriggled around so that his back was leaning against Sam while his head rested on Santana's shoulder. Brittany's head was tucked under his chin and Blaine's legs rested on top of his. Sure they were going to regret this in about an hour or so when they finally had to move. But for right he was content to lie on the floor inches away from the comfortable sofa surrounded by the soft breathing of his totally insane friends.

A week ago, he was fearful of the future. He didn't know what it held but he didn't think it would be anything good. Because good things rarely ever happened to him. And then New York was invaded by aliens. And he went from potential Lima loser with no real friends or family or potential job prospects to a high school graduate with a family of choice and a great grandfather that not only liked him but also wanted him around. Yeah, maybe he didn't need a miracle. Maybe he was just fine as it was.

"What the hell are you guys doing down there?" Clint asked, strolling into the room while munching casually on an apple. He stared down at the tangled pile of teen limbs with a look akin to confused horror in his eye. "Is this some kind of weird sexless orgy?"

"Have you seriously never been snuggled with, Uncle Clint?" Blaine asked, his voice reeking of mock innocence. Puck smirked. He was becoming familiar with that tone of voice. It meant that something was about to happen. Usually something embarrassing for the person it was directed towards. Puck saw movement out the corner of his eye. Oh, this was going to be fun.

Clint frowned. "No, I have not been snuggled. I'm an assassin for SHIELD. What part of that screams that I need or even want to be snuggled?" Clint narrowed his eyes taking in the strangely smug faces in front of him. He started to back away warily but it wasn't the teens on the floor he should've been worried about.

"I actually think every part of that says 'I need a hug', Clinton," Tony chimed in, appearing on Clint's right side. The archer jumped and quickly tried to move to the left when he bumped into a grinning Bruce. "Wouldn't you agree, Brucey?"

"It does seem to suggest that hugs are in order," Bruce said, smiling wider at the more nervous Clint. "I think the Other Guy agrees too."

"Jade Jaws is turning on me too?" Clint muttered. Puck watched as Clint's eyes darted between the two men and he was clearly contemplating the logistics of taking them both out in order to escape. He had finally reached a conclusion when Natasha and Steve joined the strange scene. Clint's blue eyes widened as he met Natasha's green gaze. "Et tu, Natalya?"

"Just accept your snuggles," Natasha teased with a small smile. Clint rolled his eyes but the smile forming at the corners of his mouth totally gave him away. With a sigh he gave into the embrace the waiting Avengers were probably going to shove on him in a few minutes anyway. At first Clint stood stiffly in the arms of his team but gradually he gave in and relaxed. Puck could almost see the darkness that was persistently clinging to the man since the invasion lifting somewhat. Maybe there was something to this whole family thing after all.

"This is just pathetic, you know?" Clint murmured, breaking the content silence that settled over the room. "I mean now we're all just a bunch of snuggling morons."

"Feels good doesn't it?" Natasha asked.

Clint sighed again. "Yeah, it kinda does."


	5. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Puck makes a decision about his life and there are several guests for dinner, some more welcome than others.

It was the last glee club meeting of the school year. And for a few of them, it was their last ever meeting of the glee club. The graduating seniors seemed torn between excitement for the future and sadness over leaving behind a life they were comfortable in. Blaine could relate. His father's offer was there in the back of his mind. This could possibly be his last… okay, who was he even trying to fool? He was definitely not staying in Lima, Ohio when he finally got the chance to do what he's wanted to do since he was thirteen years old. He was finally going to live with his father. Nothing was keeping him from that. He doubted his mother would even notice he was gone for all that she and Stanley liked to travel around the world. No, there was nothing holding him back… except for the part where he really didn't want to leave his friends behind.

By the end of the summer, the quintet would likely be scattered across the United States. Blaine would be in Malibu or New York (he was still undecided on where he wanted to live. They both had their appeal and advantages… damn choices) with his father and Pepper. Santana was headed to Kentucky for college. Brittany was going to MIT. Sam would still be in Lima finishing up his senior year. And then there was Puck. Blaine had no idea where Puck was going. But he figured it would be wherever Steve ended up. And he overheard Steve and Natasha (okay, so he was totally eavesdropping) talking earlier in the week about the super soldier setting up roots in DC where he could be close to Peggy. Blaine doubted that Puck would stay in Lima when he could be around an actual family member that liked him. So he would be gone as well.

Realistically, Blaine knew that between his father and SHIELD's resources they would never be too far away from one another. They would always be a quick plane (or Quinjet) ride away. But it would be different. Somehow in the past two weeks, Blaine had gotten used to having them only a few minutes away. It would be a whole new thing to adjust to. It was just that he wanted them close… well, actually it was exactly that. For the first time in his life, Blaine found people that understood him. That accepted him. And most importantly he found people that people that he not only felt comfortable telling about his father but also sharing his father with. He never met anyone that he wanted to tell about his father much less introduce them. But he found that in Santana, Sam, Puck and Brittany. He was comfortable sharing his father with them. He was amused that his father felt comfortable with them as well. Tony genuinely liked the other teens. Blaine was reluctant to say goodbye to that.

"So Puck did you make a decision on your post-graduation plans yet?"

Blaine rolled his eyes internally. He knew that Will meant well (or rather he thought that Will meant well) but that topic was one that they all sought to avoid with Puck in the past few days. Admittedly, it was the theme of the conversation going on in the room. All of the pending graduates were sharing their plans after the graduation was over the following week. Rachel was, of course, going to NYADA and had somehow convinced Kurt to move along with her despite his not being accepted. Finn was joining the Army, something that Rachel seemed decidedly less than excited about. Mercedes was going to out to Los Angeles to try her luck with a music career while Mike was pursuing a dance scholarship at a school in Chicago and Quinn was going to Yale. It seemed that all of the graduating gleeks were going to be scattered as well.

"I, uh, I did actually," Puck said, startling the four people who were anxiously waiting for that decision to be made. Blaine was pleased to note that he wasn't the only one of their core group staring at Puck in disbelief. Santana looked like she was a second away from reaching over the small distance between their chairs and smacking her oldest friend. Puck grinned as if he knew what they were thinking. "Well, I was actually planning on going into law enforcement."

Blaine promised swift and horrible retribution for the scoffs and mocking laughter coming from Quinn, Mercedes, Finn and Tina. He amended that to include Kurt, who he noticed was hiding a smile behind his hand. Puck rolled his eyes at Blaine's (and Sam and Santana and Brittany's) silent vow of vengeance. Blaine didn't care. Puck might have been okay with accepting their judgment and mockery but Blaine was not. They thought they knew Puck but they didn't have a damn clue. Blaine and the others knew Puck. And he knew that Puck would be great in whatever he chose to do. Especially if he chose to go into "law enforcement". Blaine smirked.

Will also gave the still amused quartet a withering look before focusing on Puck once again. "That sounds like a great plan, Puck. And I know that you will be great at it. Are you planning on staying local?"

"No, I'm actually not," he grinned, meeting Blaine's eyes. "I'm about to apply to join a private, government funded counter terrorism intelligence agency. They're located all over the world but I would be based mostly in upstate New York while I work on completing the required academy courses." He glanced over at Santana while seemingly pointedly ignoring the way Rachel's eyes lit up at that least bit of news. But Blaine knew Puck well enough to know that he caught the look and that it made him happy. Blaine snickered. Yeah, that was definitely happening. Blaine shook his head as Puck nudged Santana's leg with his foot. "You know I hear they're still looking for applicants. I apparently have an in with some people there. I might be able to get them to expedite your application"

"Really?" Santana drawled. It was a commonly known fact that Santana was having serious regrets about accepting the cheerleading scholarship. Not just because she would be away from her friends but also because cheerleading was not what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. But apparently SHIELD could be just the thing. She leaned towards Puck who met her halfway, arching an eyebrow. A smile pulled at the corners of Santana's lips. "And would we be partners, Agent Puckerman?"

"Who else could even keep up with us?" Puck countered with a smirk. "So what do you say? I think Agent Lopez has a nice ring to it."

"I say… that I think that I need to change my answer, Mr. Schue," Santana beamed. "It seems that I will in fact be going into law enforcement as well." She raised her hand to bump against Puck's waiting fist.

Blaine smiled at the pair. As if he didn't see that one coming from a mile away. He knew that as soon as Puck accepted the inevitable fact that SHIELD was in his blood, Santana would be on board as well. There was no way those two were ever meant to be split apart. They had demonstrated that fact during the past two weeks, and really countless other times as well. They two practically shared a brain. They were able to communicate silently and efficiently in regular every day situations. Blaine had no doubt that they would translate to work within the spectrum of SHIELD. They were definitely going to be the new Clint and Natasha… without all the confusing as hell romantic subtext. Because seriously? Were they dating? It had been two weeks and no one knew what the hell was going on there. Well, maybe Bruce knew but he was never going to tell anyone if he did. Blaine was halfway tempted to try and con his father into figuring that one out. But his father was not the master of subtlety and despite their obvious affection for him, Blaine doubted that neither Natasha nor Clint would hesitate to straight up murder Tony if he interfered in their weird relationship thing.

"So I guess that's more points in the column for New York, huh?" Sam asked, leaning into Blaine's side. The shorter teen chuckled softly. "Malibu might have nice beaches but New York has Santana and Puck with access to endless weapons and government secrets. That is bound to be one hell of a show. Not to mention Brittany with unlimited technology and a setting where she's actively encouraged to create whatever craziness pops into her head."

Both Blaine and Sam glanced over at the cheerleader, who was staring blankly into space with a small grin on her face while Mercedes, Quinn and Tina carried on a conversation that was clearly meant to include her but was definitely only happening around her. They both knew her well enough to know that she was dreaming up something impossible and could care less what was happening around her. Blaine stifled a laugh. MIT had no idea what they were getting themselves into with Brittany. Especially since Tony had taken a liking to the eccentric blonde and her idea of science (which included a startling amount of explosions, glitter and things that shouldn't exist in nature). If that school wasn't taken over by a Skynet clone or robotic unicorns by spring Blaine would be amazed… and slightly disappointed. Best part is that despite her being in a different state, he would still be getting a front row seat to the madness if he stayed in New York. And now Puck and Santana would as well. Everyone except….

"What about you?"

Sam blinked. "What about me?

"Well now Santana, Puck and most likely I are all going to be in New York. Britt is in Massachusetts but at least close. What are you going to do without us?'

Sam chewed absently on the bottom of his lip before giving a little shrug. "I don't know. I guess I'll be normal or something."

"That sounds boring."

Sam laughed faintly. "Yeah, it really does. But I don't exactly have a lot in the way of choices here. No surprise Avenger family members for me. I think you and Puck took them all." Blaine nudged him in the stomach. "Besides it's not so bad. At least I won't have to deal with Kurt and Finn anymore. Except for holidays. And hopefully my awesome best friends will fly me out to New York for those."

Blaine looked from Sam to where his estranged uh, Kurt… was sitting with Finn. Kurt's post graduate plans really hadn't occurred to Blaine because… well he really hadn't given Kurt much in the way of thought for the past few weeks. But Finn and Kurt were leaving. Once Puck and Blaine were gone, Sam would be able to move back in with the Hummel's with no drama. Or he could…..

"Move in with me, Dad, Pepper and most likely the rest of the Avengers, definitely Dr. Banner and probably Natasha and Clint."

"Wait, I'm sorry," Sam said, holding up his hand. "But it really sounded like you just told me to move in with you guys."

"I did."

"Dude, I can't… my parents…. And I…"

"Why not? It's not like you're living with your family anyway. You were supposed to be living with the Hummel's and for the past three weeks, you've been living with Puck or crashing at my place. Clearly your parents didn't mind. Also what's really that different about moving to New York? Besides with Dad's private jet on hand, you can see your family more than you do now… which is never."

He could tell Sam was surprised by the offer. But why he was surprised was beyond Blaine. Sam should've known that none of them would want to leave him behind. Besides if it wasn't Blaine trying to move Sam in then it would've been Puck trying to institute some sort of Junior ROTC program through SHIELD Academy and get Sam to New York that way. Blaine didn't want to think about what Santana or Brittany would pull out of their hats but he knew that it would only end in tears for someone (most likely all of them). So it was probably best that they settle this now. Time to pull out the heavy hitters.

"Plus you know… Captain America."

Sam snorted, glancing at Blaine through his bangs. "Thanks, Blaine."

"It's what friends are for."

"Dude, no. I'm friends with Quinn and Finn and even Kurt occasionally. Or rather when he decides to tell the world that we're friends. But anyway, they have never offered a fraction of what you're simply giving me without wanting anything in return. Hell, Finn offered me a place to live and I can't even sleep there because there's so much tension and drama over something Kurt did. So yeah, this is above and beyond a friend thing and I definitely need say thank you. So thank you, Blaine Stark."

Blaine felt a blush forming in his cheeks but instead of looking away he kept his gaze locked on Sam's. The green orbs looked as if they could see right through him. Maybe they could…. Maybe…

"So have you talked to Kurt lately?" Sam blurted out, sitting up straight in his seat and moving away from Blaine. For his part, Blaine blinked. When did they even move that close together? Were Sam's eyes always that bright and green and gorgeous? Also why was Sam bringing up Kurt of all people right now? Blaine glanced over his shoulder to find his boyfriend (?) staring at him with a sour expression on his face. What the hell was his problem?

"No, I haven't actually."

"Blaine, he is your boyfriend."

"Is he really? Can you really call him a boyfriend when you haven't talked in two weeks? Isn't there some kind of requirement that goes into a relationship? Like the two people in the relationship have to spend x amount of time together? Like it helps if one of the people in this relationship doesn't want to consistently punch the other in the throat for not only blabbing a secret that wasn't theirs to tell but also managing to be a major non apologetic douchebag?"

"Okay, I get it. You're still angry with him. But seriously, it's Kurt. I thought you guys were soul mates or whatever."

"I thought so too," Blaine shrugged. "It's really funny how time and distance can change one's perspective."

"Dude, he's going to be in New York too. You might as well try talking to him now. You know it's going to be awkward otherwise."

Blaine picked at his pants leg, sighing heavily and dropping the carefully constructed Anti-Kurt façade he worked so hard on building. Truth be told, he did miss Kurt. He did want to talk to him but the hurt was still there. And the fact that Kurt had yet to acknowledge how what he did was wrong really wasn't helping matters. He sighed again. "Trust me, I get it. I hate this. I hate not having closure with him at the very least. But everything for the past two weeks has been amazing with Dad, the Avengers, you… and the others. I just don't want to ruin everything, you know? I just want to enjoy my nice drama free life where I get fresh baked goods every day. Is that too much to ask?"

"No," Sam conceded with a smile small. "But you owe it to yourself to at least talk to him. I'm not saying that you need to get back together or stay together… whatever. Just go talk to him. You guys were friends before you started dating. Just try and remember at least that."

"How? And about what? He's going to want to you know, meet everyone. There's no way that's not going to be weird as hell."

Sam winced a little clearly imagining Kurt meeting Clint, Natasha and Bruce. Neither of them wanted to imagine any interactions between Tony and the boy that blabbed his son's secret to the whole world.

"I have an idea. Bring him tonight." Blaine stared blankly. "To the surprise dinner that your dad and Captain Rogers… Steve… want to throw for Puck tonight. Santana mentioned something about wanting to invite Rachel, Artie, and Mike. So invite Kurt too. Your dad and the others won't do the whole overly intimidating thing while they're fawning over Puck."

Blaine twisted his lips in thought. It made a lot of sense. He noticed that all of the Avengers seemed particularly fond and protective of Puck. So it made sense that they would be on their best (read less psychotic) behavior for anything relating to him. This would probably be the best time to bring Kurt in. Besides Sam was right. It wasn't an indication that they were going to stay together. It was simply so Blaine could figure out what it was that he wanted from the older teen. Because right now he had no damn clue.

With a sigh, Blaine typed out a quick text to his father giving him the heads up that they would have another guest for dinner that night. He admitted that he was more than a little concerned when Tony quickly replied back, telling him that Blaine had no idea. And also to order him to tell Puck that he was not to give into peer pressure because he officially had only two more graduation tickets to give away but those were also possibly claimed, depending on Pepper and Happy's availability. Now what the hell was that supposed to mean? Blaine looked out the corner of his eye to see that Finn and Kurt had Puck cornered. Again. He rolled his eyes and moved to intercept before Puck ended up doing something stupid. Or rather before Santana did something stupid on Puck's behalf.

"Dude, you're not even using them. Just let me have them so my mom can invite her co-workers," Finn pleaded. Santana had her arms crossed over her chest while Puck stood perfectly still beside her, with a hint of some emotion in his eye. Blaine didn't know what it was but it made him want to kick Finn in the junk for putting it there. It appeared Santana felt the same way. She glared up at their now very much former friend.

"Seriously, Hudson, you want the tickets for your mom's coworkers?!"

"They've known me since I was a baby. They want to see me graduate. They're almost like family now. And everyone knows Puck's family doesn't really come to things like this. So I don't see what the big deal is."

"And I could also use a few extra tickets. My Aunt Leslie and her girlfriend want to come to the ceremony too," Kurt chimed in. "So please, Puck. If you could let us have your tickets that would be appreciated. i mean they're just going to waste otherwise."

"Unfortunately, Puck can't," Blaine said, sliding up so that he was standing beside Puck. "You're out of luck. He no longer has any tickets to give away."

"What are you talking about? I have three left," Puck protested.

"Not according to my dad," Blaine shrugged. "He just told me to tell you that you are not to give away your tickets. I think we got some more company. Dad's text was kind of vague about that. But whatever, the point is," Blaine started facing a confused Kurt and Finn. "Puck doesn't have any tickets to give away. So stop bothering him. Just like you have family and extended family coming, so does he. Also why don't you bother Rachel? You know that most of her family doesn't talk to her or her fathers but you never bring that up with her. And I wonder why that is. Oh wait, no I don't. It's because you don't want to bring up the fact that her family life is less than ideal. But it's kind of funny how you have no problem doing that to Puck."

"Also, Puckerman, you know damn well you have people that want to see you graduate now. One of them even resorted to straight up stealing tickets so they could go. So stop being all martyr Puck," Santana chided elbowing her best friend in the side. "It's not a good look on you anyway."

Puck rolled his eyes. "Fine. Whatever. The tickets are spoken for. I got it."

"Excellent," Blaine looked back to Kurt, who was watching them with a dark (and jealous) expression on his face. Blaine rolled his eyes. "So we need to talk. After school, my place, be there. Ask Rachel for more information."

He didn't bother to wait for a response. He instead walked away knowing that Santana and Puck would be following. He flopped down in his original seat next to Sam, swinging his legs onto Sam's lap so Santana could sit beside him.

"The reason you invited Rachel and now Kurt to your place today…." Puck asked with a small grin. "Is this about the graduation surprise party I'm not supposed to know about but I totally do?"

Blaine laughed. "Yeah, they're not exactly stealth with their planning are they?"

"No, but they're the only people who have ever thrown me a surprise party or even just a party. So this works."

Blaine nodded, meeting Sam and Santana's gazes evenly. It was not fair that someone as awesome and giving as Puck was denied parties. They all silently vowed to fix that. Puck looked between them all and shook his head.

"You guys are so weird," he murmured. Still the red staining his cheeks and the small smile on his lips gave away his true feelings on that one. "I can't believe I'm signing up for more time spent practically living with you weirdos." Off the confused looks he got, Puck smirked. "I know you invited Sam to move into Stark Tower."

"How'd you know that? That happened literally like five minutes ago."

"Did I mention Clint's been teaching me how to read lips?" Puck grinned. He backed away with that same shit eating grin on his face and headed straight to Brittany. The blonde didn't bat an eye as plopped onto the floor beside her, resting his head on her leg. She continued ignoring her conversation with Quinn, Mercedes and Tina while threading her fingers through his hair. Blaine shook his head. Sam laughed and Santana huffed, frowning slightly.

"Not like it wasn't inherently obvious. But I guess we know who the favorite kid is now. But I swear I'm quitting this SHIELD thing before I even start if he gets a damn bow and arrow."

"No, you're not. There is no way you're going to trust someone else to have his back in the field. You're definitely not quitting."

Santana sighed. "No, I'm not. I really hate when you use logic."

Blaine snickered. "Want a hug?"

Santana bit her lip. "Surprisingly, I really do." Blaine wasn't even surprised when Sam moved around to Santana's other side and hugged her as well. "I really think we all snuggle too much. Like it might be a problem."

"Nah, there is no such thing as too much snuggling."

"Word."  
_____________________________________________  
So as it turned out, the surprise was not the actual party but rather who the special guests were. Blaine had grown comfortable with the various emotions and facial expressions Puck showed throughout the past few weeks. But even he was caught off guard by the sheer exhilaration on Puck's face as a petite, curvy brunette flung herself into his more than welcoming embrace after shoving a balloon in his hands minutes after they walked through the front door.

"Darcy!" Puck shouted as he hugged the girl tighter. "I thought you weren't coming down until next week."

Darcy pulled away from him and looked up at him. After a few minutes, she tapped him on the chin, pulling an even bright smile from his lips. The older woman beamed in his direction, moving her hand to pinch his cheek playfully. "I actually wasn't planning on it, dorkface. But then we got some company a couple of days ago. He was looking for the Avengers and it turns out that you're shacking up with them now! So we figured we'd show up early. Surprise!"

Puck laughed before looking at the balloon in his hand. It was a blue helium filled balloon with the words 'it's a boy' spread across in bold white letters. He arched an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Sadly, I didn't even buy it. Natasha and Clint did. I just was the lucky one who got to give it to you!" she cackled. Puck shook his head, clearly used to his cousin's antics.

"So I guess they filled you in?"

"Yup, Captain America is our great grand pappy."

"You mean possibly."

Darcy shook her head and pointed at the balloon. "Nope, pretty sure I mean definitely. Dr. Banner ran a test and everything."

"You did a DNA test?" Puck asked tilting his head towards Bruce with a confused look on his face. "How'd you do that? Don't you need samples to do that? And consent?"

Bruce shrugged, the very image of calm, cool and collected. "You do realize that you all leave a DNA trail starting the second you walk through the door every day. It was only a matter of collecting the DNA you leave all over and run the test."

"Uncle Bruce, I'm going to need you to play that sentence back through your head and understand why it was all wrong," Blaine commented lightly, enjoying the pensive look that crossed Bruce's face.

"What Bruce is trying to say is that DNA is on everything in this house from the cups you drink out of to the pillow you sleep on." Tony explained.

"It's still creepy," Puck muttered.

"The man never said that it wasn't," Clint grinned. "Anyway if by some small chance you weren't related, we were never going to say anything. But I mean it was pretty obvious that you were. So congratulations, Steve. In the case of twelve year old Sarah, eighteen year old Noah and twenty two year old Darcy, you are the great grandfather!"

Blaine watched that reference fly right over Steve's head. He also watched as Darcy and Clint exchanged amused glances. Poor Steve. Blaine almost felt bad but truth be told, he was kind of looking forward to the pending insanity. He was so Tony Stark's son.

"See! He's our Gramps. Now come here so I can introduce you to my boss and her boo."

Darcy's boss was the total opposite of Darcy. She was quiet, polite and just a little bit awkward. She also seemed permanently bemused by Darcy. Blaine was starting to think that was just the standard operating procedure when dealing with the two cousins. Blaine really liked Jane. She seemed nice enough but he knew he wasn't the only one that was more interested in the blonde, hulking mass of muscle she was attached to by the hand.

"Kid, meet your Uncle Thor," Tony said, slinging an arm around Blaine's shoulders. Blaine's eyes widened as he got his first glimpse of the alien god in person. He was definitely more impressive up close than on television. "Also Captain 2.0, this is why you have one less ticket now."

"And you thought your section was going to be quiet," Clint snickered from where he now sat on the floor. He was leaning against the couch that Natasha and Bruce were on. "Thor does not understand the meaning of the phrase inside voice."

"He is correct. What is this inside voice you speak of? Jane has mentioned it as well during the past week," Thor boomed. Blaine could see the spark of mischief that ran through Puck's eyes in that moment. He was getting too good at reading these weirdos he willingly (and happily) called friends. He made a mental note to keep an eye on that one. Not to stop it, but mostly because he wanted to have the chaos captured on film. Yeah, he was definitely Tony Stark's son.  
_____________________________________________  
Steve was usually not one to complain about life and the lemons it loved to throw at him. A lot of happened to him in a short period of time. He went from small and sickly to having the body of well... he hated bragging but he was aware that physically he was impressive. He met Peggy and Howard and formed the Howling Commandos. He lost Bucky. He crashed a plane into the Arctic. He thought that was the end of his story but it wasn't. He woke up seventy years later to learn that Howard was long gone and Peggy would never be the same again. He also found out that he had a daughter. A daughter that died never knowing her father. He had two grandchildren and they in turn gave him great grandchildren. He was twenty six years old with great grandchildren. Life just tossed him one hell of a lemon.

Because seriously, he had great grandchildren! He had three to be precise though everything he heard about Sarah made him a little hesitant with meeting her. He knew that one day he would want to… because she was family. But for right now he was content to get to know the oldest of his great grandchildren. Darcy was just as charming as Puck. Within five minutes, she had nearly every Avenger in love with her and ready to declare her their best friend for life. Steve knew that even if they weren't his great grandchildren, he would've loved them both like they were. They were an interesting and fun mix of Peggy, Howard and Bucky. He was definitely looking forward to getting to know them. But first….

"You wanted to see me, Dr. Banner?"

Bruce gave him a look reminding him for the hundredth time that the other man told him to call him Bruce. The fact that he managed to convey this look even as they moved further into the kitchen and away from the crowd growing in the living room was impressive. A few minutes ago, the rest of the party guests arrived and they were quickly acclimating to the ways of the Avengers. Well, most of them were anyway. Steve knew that he was supposed to be the paragon of American values or whatever the hell Tony kept calling him but even he was hard pressed to find something remotely endearing about Blaine's boyfriend. Especially with the way he kept subtly making condescending comments about Puck. Steve was aware of the history between Puck and Kurt. But he also knew that Puck had made great efforts at trying to make up for his past actions. And the fact that Kurt continued to hold that against him when he himself was guilty of something just as horrible... Yes, Steve was definitely struggling to finding a reason to like Kurt Hummel.

"Steve?"

The super soldier blinked realizing that Bruce was trying to get his attention. "Sorry. I lost my train of thought for a moment. Now you wanted to talk to me, Bruce? Something about Noah?"

"It's about the sample I took from him," Bruce looked hesitant. "I don't want to alarm you or him but when I was comparing his sample versus yours, I found that they matched a little too well."

"Wouldn't that be because we're related?"

"Yes, but it's not just that…. It's also…."

"He's got super soldier serum growing in his blood," Clint interjected, appearing from out of nowhere. Bruce threw Clint a dirty look but the archer simply shrugged it off. "What? You were never going to get that sentence out. Just tell him like it is, Bruce. The kid inherited more than just eyes and a strong jawline from the Captain over here. He may be producing super soldier serum."

"What do you mean, he may be?"

"Well after I noticed that in his sample, I may have looked into blood-work and physical exams he's given in the past."

"He had Tony hack Puck's medical records dating back to when he was a kid," Clint translated.

"Yeah, I did," Bruce shrugged, finally accepting that Clint was going to interject no matter what he said or thought about it. "And there were plenty of records to go through. Did you that Noah's first hospitalization was age five? He fell down the stairs and broke his arm. He broke his wrist and a leg when he was seven after he tripped during a family outing. When he was ten, he was admitted to the hospital with several contusions, broken ribs and a punctured lung. He almost died. The kid has been through a lot. Either he's the clumsiest and most tragic young man I've ever met. Or..."

Bruce thankfully trailed off. Steve definitely didn't need that spelled out for him. He had an idea based on conversations with Puck. Even before he actually worked up the nerve to speak with him one on one, Steve could see that the teen was constantly surprised by the affection he received not just from his friends but from the Avengers as well. Once they started talking, there were little hints that Steve desperately wanted to pretend weren't there but now Bruce was telling him that it happened. That his grandson actually hurt his own child. That was a troubling revelation, and he would deal with it in time. But for now, he had a more immediate concern. Because Puck wasn't the only one who struggled to cope with basic human decency and affection.

Steve's jaw clenched even as his gaze flickered to Clint. The archer was tense and his eyes were a little too bright in that moment. Bruce was watching him as well, waiting to see if he had any reaction. Eventually Clint swallowed and nodded his head. Steve made a note to keep an eye on him. He read Clint's file. He knew what he went through before joining SHIELD and he was all too aware of what he went through recently. He definitely didn't want Clint fading away. Though he only knew him (and the rest of the team) for a few short weeks, Steve was attached to all of them. He didn't want to lose any of them. But especially not one that was already so attached to his great grandchildren.

"So I definitely need to have words with my grandson," Steve finally said, clearing his throat. "But back to Noah's medical records. Did you find the serum there too?"

"That's the thing. None of his tests reveal the hormones commonly found in the serum until last year. I should also note that he appeared to have hit physical maturity last year."

Steve raked a hand through his hair trying to understand. It didn't help. Somehow Noah was starting to produce the same serum that turned Steve from a weak, asthmatic into a super soldier. And the kid was producing it on his own. Puck hadn't been injected with the formula. It was passed down…. From Steve.

"What about Darcy?"

"She could also be producing the serum but I think it would've been observed by now. I believe that it either bypassed her or it manifested itself in a different way. The only way to know for sure would be to take live samples from all three of you."

"I'll talk to them about it tomorrow," Steve promised.

"You okay?" Bruce asked, his voice quiet and eyes soft as he looked at the increasingly more distressed super soldier.

Steve had to laugh. Was he okay? The super solider serum was both the bane of his existence and his salvation. It was what transformed him from a virtual ninety pound weakling into someone would could, and did, make a difference. But his whole life became defined by that formula. He became a mockery of what he wanted to be. While he was proud to wield his shield and the suit, he knew how Captain America truly came to be. It was because of the formula that he woke up alone in a world that was so different than the one he knew. The formula made him stronger and faster and better… but it also made him someone people wanted to use, to study. He didn't want that life for Puck. He knew that he had only begun to scratch the surface on Puck's past but Steve knew it wasn't pleasant. He knew that the teen had been used and abused before and Steve didn't want something he unwittingly passed down to hurt him more.

"Aw, too bad. I guess someone wasn't worthy!" Puck's voice floated from the living room and into the kitchen. Steve could almost hear the smug smirk plastered on the kid's face. He exchanged confused glances with Clint and Bruce before following them both to where the rest of the party was gathered. Mjolnir was on the coffee table in the middle of the room, almost if it were some kind of bizarre centerpiece. Blaine and Sam were pulling on the handle together trying to lift it up. It clearly wasn't working much to the amusement of Thor, Darcy and Puck.

Blaine gave up with a groan and glared in Puck's direction. "If you think it's so easy, why don't you try?"

Puck snorted. "Dude, I can tell you now that I'm very far from worthy."

Steve tried to ignore how Puck's voice wavered a little behind the false bravado he was putting up. Steve really tried to ignore Kurt's snicker of agreement. He made a mental note to thank Artie later when the wheelchair bound teen "accidentally" tipped his drink over on Kurt's lap causing the other teen to run out the room in search of a bathroom.

Santana watched him go with a satisfied smirk of her own before focusing on Puck again. "Oh, come on, Puckerman. Don't be a buzzkill" she jeered, from her spot on the sofa between Brittany and Rachel. "We all tried."

"Maybe if I tried with the gloves," Tony muttered. "There's got to be something to this."

"There is," Thor announced looking regal as ever reclined in the arm chair with his arm around Jane. "None of you are worthy."

"Come on, Puck," Sam pressed. "Represent for humanity!"

Puck rolled his eyes but rose to his feet to take a stand behind the hammer. He wrapped his fingers around the hilt, took a deep breath and gave a token pull. He didn't manage to lift it but a silence fell over the tittering group as the hammer wobbled a bit. Puck's eyes widened and he backed away in surprise.

"The hell? It… moved?"

Darcy jumped to her feet and tried her luck. The hammer again wiggled but wouldn't lift. The two cousins exchanged wide eyed looks. Steve pursed his lips as a theory formed in his mind. For his own confirmation, Steve took his own turn. As he suspected, the hammer shifted a bit more for him. Enough to make Thor nervous enough to take it back. But that was just as fine because it just proved what Steve was starting to suspect. He thought back to the Red Skull and his monstrous appearance after he was given the same formula as Steve. Howard told him it was if the formula chose him. It saw who he truly was and not just the small, scrappy kid from Brooklyn. Steve was starting to think that it might be the same for Puck. Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing that Puck was displaying signs of being a super solider. Steve didn't know him very well (yet) but he knew enough about the kid to know that Puck was someone who cared deeply about bullies, mostly because he learned from being one. But the glee club had changed him. Having a daughter changed him. Clearly, it was for the better. The formula in him saw past all of the things that made Puck think he wasn't worth it and proved that he was. He had a feeling that Tony was right. There was something that was bringing the kids together. Because no matter what Puck was becoming. It was clear that he wouldn't be going through it alone.

And then the doorbell rang. Tony immediately looked to Blaine who was also sitting up and alert. "You invite anyone else?"

Steve watched as Blaine made eye contact with Brittany, Sam, Puck and Santana before shaking his head. "No, this is it."

The tension only increased when the door opened and closed. Natasha and Clint both pulled knives out of who only knew where. Thor was pushing Jane and Darcy behind him while he held his hammer in the other hand. Steve exchanged looks with Bruce and Tony. They were all set to make a move when their intruder made himself known. He held his hands up in surrender, letting them all see the shiny metallic object dangling from the fingers of his left hand. One eye stared at them in a familiar mixture of amusement and condescension.

"Did you know that there is a key under the mat?"

Tony groaned, looking at Blaine. "I thought I told you to move that."

"No," Blaine shook his head. "I thought you were going to do that."

Steve fought the urge to roll his eyes at both father and son and instead focused on their newest arrival. "Director Fury, to what do we owe the honor?"

Nick grinned before pulling two envelopes out of his long coat's pocket. One of them was smaller and brightly colored. The other was a manila envelope that Clint seemed to recognize. Before Steve could question why the archer suddenly looked like he was going to be sick, Nick was turning toward Puck and handing him the smaller envelope.

"Congratulations on your graduation, Mr. Puckerman."

Puck took the envelope hesitantly. "Uh thanks, Mr. Uh?"

"My name is Nicholas Fury. I'm the Director of SHIELD. Can I say that I have waited a long time to meet you?"

"You knew about me?"

"Of course. I've been tracking Agent Carter's family for a very long time. I knew about Ms. Lewis before she interacted with SHIELD. That was a twist of fate I didn't see coming. Nor did I anticipate that you and Blaine would become friends. "

"Wait, you knew about me too?" Blaine asked, raising an eyebrow. Nick rolled his eye.

"I'm the Director of SHIELD. There isn't a lot that gets past me. Of course I knew about you, Mr. Anderson. As well as your brother, Cooper."

"I knew it!" Tony muttered. "But you didn't really come all this way just rub it in that you knew I had a secret kid. Did you?"

"No, I actually came all this way to attend the graduation of Steve's secret great grandkid and another one of my two new recruits."

"Wait, two?" Puck's brow furrowed. He glanced at Santana who shrugged. "San didn't even decide she was applying until today."

"I know," Nick replied cryptically. He opened the larger envelope and pulled out three different pieces of paper. "Two days ago, I received applications complete with recommendations from one of my best agents for a Santana Lopez and a Noah Puckerman. I approved them this afternoon. You two start at the end of the summer." The pair exchanged a brief fist bump and a grin. "Sadly, I did not come here just to deliver that happy news. I'm here because in the same envelope I also received a resignation letter."

"A resignation letter? From who?" Bruce murmured. And then all eyes flickered towards Clint who was halfway out the door. He groaned as he realized he was caught.

"Seriously, Clint?" Natasha snapped.

"What? It saved a stamp!" Clint protested. He glared at Nick. "Why are you even here? I'm assuming you actually read the letter. So I hope you should know why I'm doing this. I really hope you didn't come here to try and change my mind about leaving SHIELD."

"Do you really think I'm going to let you quit after all the effort that Phil and I put in with you? You were the youngest recruit in SHIELD history. You still are. We made a silent pledge to never take anyone under the age of eighteen after we picked you up. Phil and I went through sheer hell getting you to where you are. And you actually thought I was going to just let you walk away from it because you were brainwashed and shot me in the vest?"

"It was a thought," Clint retorted. It was the first time since Steve met the archer that he could see how young the agent really was. Steve knew that Clint wasn't that old and was actually closer to his age, but it was fascinating to watch his interactions with Nick. He was almost like a petulant child being scolded by his parent. Actually given what Steve knew about how Clint was recruited into SHIELD and hearing Nick's own words just a few seconds ago, that was probably a lot more accurate than it probably should've been.

"Yeah, I'll politely request that you cease those kinds of thoughts. Also I'm a little confused here, Barton. You knew I wasn't going to let you go without a fight. You had to know that I wasn't going to accept this. Not after everything we've been through. Not to mention what you and Phil have been through. You think this is what he wants for you? You think he wants you to walk away?"

Clint's jaw tensed and his hands which were previously hanging loose at his side balled into tight fists as he fought the urge not to explode. When he spoke the easygoing archer was gone and in his place was the master assassin they all knew laid under the surface. He didn't really display it before but it was prominent now.

"It doesn't really matter what Phil wants for me, does it? It really doesn't matter what he and I have been through either. None of it matters. I screwed up. I let Loki get in my head. And now because of that, Phil is….."

"Hoping that you have what will pass as a good excuse for the dramatics," a cool voice that was all too familiar to the gathered Avengers finished.

Clint's eyes widened impossibly and all color drained from his face as he turned around to face the front door and the man with the sharp suit, warm smile and soft, patient green eyes. Clint took a shaky breath, taking a step backwards, shuddering when he hit the wall. They all watched as his legs finally gave in and he slid down the wall, one word passing through his lips.

"Phil?!"

"Son of Coul!"

"Agent?!"

"Uncle Agent?"

Darcy giggled, clapping a confused Puck on the back. "Congrats, little cousin. Looks like the Puckerman family section just scored a full house!"


	6. Hooked On A Feeling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Clint reaffirms his role as the 'kid', reads and sings. Strangely all of these lead to bonding moments. And this story officially encompasses far more of the MCU than should be allowed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for everyone who has checked this out. Yes, I have more complete chapters up at FF.net but I'm trying to bring everything over here. One of these days I'll get to a point where I'm just able to cross-post on both sites. But I'm still in progress. So if you're really dying to know what happens, you can check this out over on FF.net or just wait until I upload here. Either way, I'm just super grateful that someone other than me likes this mess of a story. Thank you all!

Clint wasn't exactly lying when he told Puck that he was less than the picture of an ideal agent when Phil plucked him out of prison at the ripe age of 17. He just didn't paint the whole picture He kind of sugarcoated exactly how much of a pain in the ass he actually was back then. Nick didn't sugarcoat it though when he said that they went through sheer hell with him. That was the truth. Clint really didn't like looking back at his first two years in the agency. The first two years were rough. He didn't trust anyone (not even himself). He didn't like anyone (especially not himself). He spent two years waiting for them to decide that he wasn't useful anymore and dump him somewhere. But they didn't. Instead Nick and Phil put up with his attitude and his sometimes flagrant insubordination. They would correct him but move on. They didn't dwell. They didn't question. But Clint still didn't trust.

It was all too good to be true. Good things simply did not happen to Clint Barton. He learned that at the age of six when his mother finally grew a backbone and decided that she was leaving her abusive husband. She made a plan to get her and her sons out of the house. All she had to do was suffer through one more day with him and then they were free. She died in an accident with his drunken waste of a father when they were only a day away from freedom. After that it was the group home and then the circus… and then jail. So yeah, Clint didn't believe good things could happen to him. He didn't believe that good people would give a damn about him. But clearly they did because two years after he pulled Clint out of jail and promised him a chance at a brighter future, Phil Coulson almost died to ensure that future for Clint.

Phil was only supposed to be Clint's handler. His SO. He wasn't supposed to be on the field taking hits for his angry, emotionally stunted teenage sniper. But he was and he did. Phil almost died because Clint didn't care about his own life. As he sat by Phil's bedside waiting and hoping that he would pull through, Clint finally accepted it. He finally accepted that the hovering and the concern for his wellbeing and the birthdays wasn't just for show. It was because Phil cared. He actually cared about Clint. And despite his not wanting to ever care again, Clint realized that he cared too. He cared about Phil. He also cared about Nick because to the best of his knowledge the good director never told a soul about how Clint had a minor breakdown following that particular revelation. He cared and was cared about. It was new thing. He reveled in and he let himself grow and evolve because of it. He became one of the better agents in SHIELD not because he was loyal to the agency but because he was loyal to Nick and Phil. He wanted to make them proud because for the first time in years he had a family. And then Loki happened and it took away everything Clint worked for and wanted in this world.

He knew it was a little bit childish to send the resignation letter in with Santana and Puck's applications. Maybe a small part of him did want Fury to fight him on it. To tell him that he wasn't a worthless traitor. To tell him that it wasn't his fault that Phil died and that he would still be welcome back at SHIELD. Because right now the self-deprecating voice in his head was dead set on telling him all the ways in which he didn't deserve to even be sitting with the rest of the Avengers much less still be considered an agent of SHIELD. And that's exactly what Nick did. He fought him. And he bought the one person aside from Natasha that Clint could never say no to. The one person Clint thought he would never get to see again. It's funny that when you lose a person you suddenly think of a thousand things you want to say to them. And now that Clint had a chance to say those thousand things to Phil again, he couldn't think of a single thing to say. Good thing Phil was always fluent in Clint.

"Happy Belated Birthday," Phil said just a second before he pushed a box onto Clint's lap. The archer looked between the present and his returned from the dead handler in confusion. "I meant to give it to you when we got you back. But I was… a bit delayed."

"You were a bit dead," Clint pointed out, pushing the box off his lap. It landed with a heavy thud beside him, echoing on the no doubt very expensive tiled floor of the balcony. He raised an eyebrow at the package. "What the hell did you get me? A brick?"

"Why don't you open it?"

Clint reached towards it before pulling his hand back abruptly. He swallowed when he noticed that his hands were trembling slightly. He clenched his hands into fists, willing them to stop and dropped them on his lap when they didn't listen to his command. He heard Phil let out a soft sigh before a too familiar weight was sitting beside him with a shoulder pressed against his. Clint let out a shaky breath at the solid proof that this was happening.

"How are you even alive?" Clint finally asked once the embarrassing urge to bawl his eyes out had passed. For now. "I saw… the damage report. You were dead."

"I don't know the answer to that question," Phil said, shaking his head. "Pretty sure that Fury did something though. Pretty sure I should be concerned but I guess I'm just happy to be back. Whatever he did will just be something to wonder about."

"It's been three weeks," Clint said quietly. "How long where you…. Not dead? And where were you?"

"Clint, it's been eleven years. I would think that by now you could just ask me what you really want to know. You want to know the length of time between me waking up and me finding you." Clint nodded his head and had to turn his head away to hide his glistening eyes at Phil's warm chuckle. "It's been a week. As for where I was? I keep saying Tahiti but I don't think that's right. I think that might be part of that whole thing I should be concerned thing."

Clint nodded. "Did Nick tell you that your cards got messed up?"

Phil tensed. "My cards were in my locker." Clint looked back at Phil. "I'm going to kill that manipulative son of a bitch." Despite himself, Clint snickered. "Oh, laugh it up. I seem to remember a certain archer who threw a temper tantrum when his Harry Potter books were destroyed when his apartment burned down. I also recall it took said archer's handler and the director holding him down to stop him from running back into a still burning building to try an save them."

"I loved those books," Clint protested with a small smile.

He did love those books. Not because the series was great, although it was, but because the books were the first birthday present he received in years. He really was more upset about the loss of his books than he was his apartment. But he was over it all when Phil and Nick arrived to pick him up (and stop him from almost murdering himself over some books) from the burned down remains of his apartment building at four in the morning only to bring him back to Phil's house. He was told he could stay there until he found another place. He's been living there ever since. Phil gave him a permanent place to live when he wasn't on mission. The one constant in his life at SHIELD was Phil. And he admitted to being beyond lost when he thought the man was dead. He was still a little lost now that he wasn't.

"So Noah Puckerman?" Phil started breaking the comfortable silence that settled over the two men. "You filled the application in for him."

"Yeah," Clint shrugged. "The kid was made for this. Literally. SHIELD is in his blood."

"But that's not why, is it?"

"No, it's not," Clint smiled wryly. "It's because he's like me. I know what I was like at his age. He's just a little older than I was when you first picked me up. Not that I was much better once I was recruited."

"You got there."

"Yeah, I did. But yeah, I just remembered what I was like at that age. And I guess I saw something there. I saw the reason you recruited me."

"And your next move was then to completely abandon him once you got him into SHIELD?" Phil asked. His tone was calm. There was no accusation or recrimination there. He was genuinely interested in Clint's thought process. That was one of the things that Clint liked best about Phil. One of the things he missed most about Phil.

"I knew he would be okay. That kid doesn't need me. He just needed someone to point him in the right direction. But I really feel like he would've reached the SHIELD conclusion at some point in time on his own. And he would've brought Santana along with him then too. Blaine is going to end up there one day. And Steve and Tony will be there for all of them. So I knew Puck would be ok because he had his family."

"That doesn't include you, Uncle Clint?" Clint tensed, looking down at his shoes. He gave a small shrug. "Well I'm reasonably sure that Mr. Puckerman and all of the people that are poorly trying to spy on us at the moment would beg to differ on that."

Clint leaned over the edge of the balcony railing just in time to spot a flash of red ducking back into the window just below his newest hiding spot. He knew she wasn't alone. Less than a minute later he saw Santana sticking her head out the same window. Her eyes widened when she caught him still looking. Brittany peered out as well waving before Santana yanked her back in. Clint laughed shifting away from the railing.

"I guess I did find a family, huh?"

"I guess you did."

Clint chewed on his lip for a moment before finally looking up to meet Phil's gaze. "But I guess I always did have a family."

Phil grinned before ruffling the archer's hair. "Now you're getting it."

"Oh, shut up," Clint growled, shoving Phil's hand away.

"It's okay that you're a little slow. We all love you anyway."

"Death has made you kind of an ass, you know that?"

"The better to fit in with the rest of you," Phil retorted with a laugh that finally had Clint relaxing. He finally felt settled in his own skin again. The parts of him that shattered when Natasha finally confirmed what Clint felt in his gut were slowly mending themselves. For the first time in his miserable life, something good happened to him and he wasn't going to question it. He didn't know what Fury did to bring Phil back from the dead but he was going to accept it and even appreciate it.

"I'm glad you're back," Clint murmured. Phil nodded and slung an arm around the younger man and squeezed him in a one armed hug briefly.

"Me too, kiddo. Me too."

For once, Clint didn't protest being referred to as a kid. Then again he hardly every protested when it was Phil or Nick. Other SHIELD agents, well they didn't get to call him kid. He knew that a lot of people expected him to be much older than he actually was. Especially considering the fact that he was with the agency for so long and was one of the few agents in Fury's inner circle. It was not his fault that he was an overachiever. There were very few that could say they were a master assassin with ten years of service under their belt by the age of 28. But if Clint had anything to say about it, Noah Puckerman and Santana Lopez were going to come pretty damn close. They already had Fury wrapped around their collective little fingers. For someone as badass and gruff as Fury appeared to be, he sure did melt when it came to damaged teenaged recruits. He really seemed to have a soft spot for them.

"About Santana," Phil started in that weird way that always made Clint think he was somehow reading his mind. "She didn't decide until today that she was even going to apply to SHIELD. Yet you sent in the application for her as well."

"I guess if I saw myself in Puck then I saw Nat in Santana. They're cut from the same cloth those two. Let's all be glad the Red Room never got a hold of that one." Phil snickered. "Puck is going to need someone who will help ground him. Someone who will have his back in the field. I've seen them together. They work as a unit already. They'll be good together."

"Please tell me they're not going to be another you and Natasha."

"What do you mean? Me and Nat are good."

"You know exactly what I mean. Just tell me that my death served more of a purpose than to motivate Steve and Tony to get it together and unite the rest of the Avengers. Please tell me something good came from my death."

"Oh, you mean... that."

"Yeah, that," Phil replied dryly.

"Uh, that's still being, uh, it's complicated…. I don't actually know."

"We're a thing," Natasha's voice floated up. Clint slapped the palm of his hand against his forehead and groaned. He leaned over the railing to see her smiling up at him. "What? Like Phil was the only one wondering. You don't really pay attention that much do you?"

"Go away, Nat. I'm fine," Clint whined. "Go spy on someone else. And take the kids with you." He grinned at the chorus of protests from behind his partner. Natasha rolled her eyes with a smile before pushing back in the window. Clint glanced at Phil with a nervous grin. "So I guess we're together now."

"About damn time."

"Really?"

"What? It's true. You two drove Nick and I nuts with this whole dating not dating thing you had going on. I don't think my heart can take watching Puck and Santana do the same thing. Not to mention the pockets of most SHIELD agents. The betting pool was getting a bit steep."

"Well I don't think you have to worry about that. He's totally got this thing for that Rachel girl. I guess I can see it. Personally I think he fits better with Santana but Blaine told me that those two together would probably be the equivalent of a five alarm fire happening right in front of you in terrifying real life Technicolor. I really think he needs to work on his metaphors. Then again he could talk like Tony all the time which would be really terrifying. Matter of fact I think that might scarier than Puck and Santana dating and why are you looking at me like that?"

Clint arched an eyebrow as he looked at the fondly bemused look on Phil's face. He had seen a few times throughout the years of knowing the older man. He always wore that look when Clint went on his usual rambling rants that seemed to only happen around Phil or Natasha. Phil always had that look when he started talking. It was almost like he was proud. Clint thought back to everything he just said and came up blank.

"Seriously, what?"

"It's nothing," Phil replied, shaking his head. "Just… I did good getting you out of that jail cell."

"You just now figuring that out? Dude, I helped save New York with a bow and arrow! Like who does that? I should've died the second I stepped out there. But I didn't. I lived and helped stop an alien invasion. I blew up a god! Ok well I kind of blew up a god. I knocked him off his stupid flying scooter thing at any rate and then the Hulk smashed. But he only did that because I shot Loki out of the sky. So really it's safe to say that I was a valuable indispensable member of the team and they would've failed without me."

"Were you now?"

Clint paused as he realized that Phil more than likely knew all this but still looked interested in hearing about it. Clint also realized this was the first time that he was actually talking about the events of that day with anything other than dread or guilt. It was also the first time he was able to see that he did play a role in their victory. He did help. He smiled softly at his handler.

"I'm really glad you're back."

"Me too," Phil repeated. "And for the record, I don't blame you for what happened. You were taken over by Loki. None of it was your fault."

"It feels like it was."

"I know," Phil sighed, bumping his shoulder against Clint's. "One day you'll figure out that every bad thing that happens to you or around is not always your fault. Loki choosing you was not something you could control or something that you chose. Although I have to admit that I'm glad he saw something in you that day."

"What? Why?! He made me do horrible things. I killed innocent people. I killed innocent agents, Phil! I helped him escape and he killed you. Why the hell would you be happy that he picked me?!"

"Because the alternative would be that he killed you or maimed you and left you to be buried underneath the ruins of the base like the other agents he didn't choose," Phil retorted, coming the closest he ever had to yelling at Clint. And that included the time that the archer scratched Lola. Clint blinked. "I'm sorry that those other agents are dead. I'm sorry that I died. But you dying wouldn't have been acceptable. I would not have been ok with you being dead. I could not handle you being dead. And besides had he chosen anyone else, they might have killed Nick as well."

"I shot him!"

"In the vest," Phil pointed out. "You shot him in the vest that you knew he was wearing. Why didn't you take a headshot? Or aim for a weak spot in the armor. I know you know them. You would've hit him because you haven't missed a target since you were 12. You had a chance to kill Nick and you didn't. You could've killed Maria and you didn't. You fought Loki the best you could. I don't know a lot of other agents that are as stubborn as you. A lot of them would've given up and been his willing slave. You fought as hard as you could and that's why you're still here today."

Clint thought about what Phil was saying. He didn't really think about it that way before. He remembered shooting Nick. He was initially thinking about a headshot but changed his mind at the last minute. He remembered feeling frustrated at at the fact that he didn't kill Fury but now he was realizing the frustration was Loki's control and the decision to save Fury was all him. Phil was also right about Maria. He could've killed her. Hell, he should've killed Maria but all of his bullets missed. When he learned that Selvig built the backdoor into the portal device, Clint felt even more guilt over his actions. Selvig had enough control that he ended up doing something that saved the day in the end. But maybe Clint did too. Because if Nick and Maria hadn't lived that day, the Avengers might not have been called together in the first place.

"I guess, maybe Loki picking me wasn't a bad thing after all."

"Now you're getting it," Phil said, ruffling his hair again.

"Stop doing that!" Clint grunted, shifting away from the other man. "Seriously, back in my life less than an hour and you're already messing with my hair. I keep telling you I'm not a puppy or a kid."

"But you are. You're my kid, therefore I get to do this," Phil said before ruffling his hair once again. Clint let it go this time because it felt nice to hear Phil say aloud what Clint already knew in his heart. He was Phil's something. Phil played many roles in Clint's life. He was like a father, mother, and brother in one package. Clint accepted that fact the day he watched Phil bleeding out for a hit that was meant for him. Death hadn't changed that either. He was starting to get that nothing really would. Phil was and always would be his family. He smiled softly and craned his head to look over at Phil.

"So did you know that Tony had kids too?"

"I actually did not," Phil replied, leaning back on his elbows. "I did know about Puckerman though. You know how obsessed Nick was with the original super soldier experiment. He pretty much figured that whole situation out on his own."

"Yeah, like he's the only one that gets super nerdy and weird when it comes to Captain America." Clint laughed as Phil elbowed him in the stomach. "You need to get to know Sam. I think he's like your long lost child. He pretty much stalked Steve from the second we walked through the door."

"Sounds like a smart kid," Phil grinned. "Tell me about them, Tony's sons. Are they anything like him?"

"It's weird. I totally want Bruce to do a DNA test because I refuse to believe that Cooper is not biologically his. They act so much alike. Or rather, Cooper acts a lot like Tony before he settled down with Pepper. Blaine is some kind of anomaly. When you first look at him, he doesn't act anything like Tony or his brother. Then you really look closer and you realize that he has these… moments."

"Huh?"

Clint thought about an example when he found one approaching the house. He had only seen the couple through various pictures hanging throughout the house but it wasn't difficult to tell that this was Annette and Stanley Anderson. They were finally back. And it appeared that they were confused by the number of cars in their driveway. Clint couldn't fight the scoff that escaped his lips as he got his first look at Blaine's mother and stepfather. He could see why the kid grew up confused. He definitely didn't resemble either one of them. Blaine was all Tony. And in more ways than just looks. Clearly he got Tony's brains and heart too. Because Clint knew that Tony Stark had one of the biggest hearts around, despite his constant urge to hide that little truth from the world.

Clint's lips ticked upwards as he watched the couple approach the front door. He heard Tony nagging Blaine about the security system vaguely while he was climbing up here earlier. And his view from the balcony allowed him to see the moment when Stanley reached for the doorknob only to receive a lovely non-lethal jolt of electricity. Annette gasped as her husband collapsed to ground in convulsions.

"Blaine Michael Anderson!"

Clint's smirk grew brighter at the smothered giggles he heard coming from right below them. He didn't even need to look to know that Tony and his sons were admiring their handiwork. Yeah, Blaine was definitely all Tony.  
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________  
"I knew this would happen if you got too involved with Blaine!"

Tony barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he stared down his ex-girlfriend. There was once a time when this woman was his everything. He met her when she had nothing and he shared his world with her and her son. But she changed. She went from idealistic young woman who hit a rough patch in life to materialistic, vain and ego centric. She went from being a loving mother and partner to bordering on shrewish and neglectful. When Blaine was born, Cooper took a lot of the responsibility of making sure his brother didn't die. It led to a lot of resentment on both ends of that brotherly relationship. Resentment that was only now starting to heal. Annette Anderson was the not the woman he fell in love with. But he often wondered how much of a role he played in her change.

"Annette, Blaine is fine. He's actually better than fine. He hasn't been harassed by reporters since that first day. The school has very strict policies and has been enforcing them. They got an anonymous private donation and were able to hire actual security guards for the campus. He gets a ride to and from school every morning. He's good."

"You just don't get it. This is not the kind of life I wanted for Blaine. I wanted him to have a normal life with an attentive father who didn't spend all of his time building robots! I didn't want him growing up in your world of craziness and loose women."

"Really?! The kid likes the craziness and the robots. Even Cooper liked the robots and he hates anything that requires him to actually think or read! Also, you know damn well there haven't been any loose women in years. It's just Pepper now."

"Right," Annette drawled. "Pepper. She's still hanging around, huh?"

Tony clenched his jaw. He knew she was trying to provoke him. She always took a shot at Pepper when she was trying to get to him. So he took a deep breath, and rolled his shoulders. "Yes, Pepper is still hanging around. I think she'll probably be around for quite some time too. I don't think she has any intention of stealing off into the middle of the night taking my son and unborn child with her."

Annette rolled her eyes and rested her hip against the kitchen counter. "How much longer are you going to try and throw that in my face? I get it. I was wrong. I should've told you about Blaine. But I didn't. And every day you continue to prove why that was for the best. You have never led the kind of life designed to raise a child. Now you're playing superhero? How does Blaine fit in there? How is he supposed to get what he needs when he has to share you with your company, Pepper, your band of freaks and the rest of the world? And on that note, how dare you bring those people around my children without my permission?!"

"There is so much wrong in everything you just said that I'm actually at a loss as to where to begin correcting it. Nope, I lied. I do know. Blaine and Cooper are and have always been my number one priority. If they asked me to give up being Iron Man today, I would gladly do so. Neither of them have ever complained about not getting what they need from me. Because they know they come first. The only reason I don't spend more time with Blaine is because of you and you know it."

Annette opened her mouth to protest but he held up a hand. "And as for my 'band of freaks' that was the only time you get to talk about them that way. And I would've asked your permission to bring them along except for two little things you seem to be forgetting."

"And what's that?"

"One, you were out of the country. Again. You've been MIA for the past two months. That's right. Blaine finally told me the truth. You've been leaving him home alone for several months at a time. And you're lecturing me on not giving our son what he needs? Two, I can invite who I want to this house when I want because I bought the damn thing. I bought you this house, Annette. And I can damn well bring anyone that I like into the house that I bought. Especially when those people have been more involved in your son's life in the past month than you have since he was born!"

Annette tried to argue again but Tony was done. He hated arguing with his ex but that was primarily the only way they communicated these days. The woman he loved once upon a time was gone and in her place was this… harpy who only looked at her sons as a means to an ends. He wanted to blame Stanley's influence but truthfully the other man was a bit of a pushover and Annette was always manipulative. Tony was just so stupidly in love he failed to see it when they were together. But now with Blaine in the equation, it was all he could see.

"Annie, we're done here. There is nothing left to discuss. I know that you're going to use this as an excuse to skip out of town again. But before you do, can you do me a favor and at least pretend to be a mother to your sons for at least a couple of hours?"

He left before she could even try and open her mouth again. He stomped out the kitchen and into the living room to find the room was pretty much empty. Not surprisingly but the return of the Anderson couple signaled the end of the party. Puck, Sam, Santana and Brittany opted to go home for once and Cooper and Blaine volunteered to drop them off. Phil and Nick were actually staying in the same hotel as Jane, Darcy and Thor. Tony really wanted the details on that one. He also wondered where Natasha, Steve and Bruce disappeared to as there was no sign of them in the living room. But he did find their final player. Clint was reclined on the sofa with his legs upright and reading from a book resting on his propped up legs. Tony smiled as he heard the archer quietly singing. In that moment, he was truly the epitome of relaxation. But Tony didn't doubt for a second that Clint knew he was standing there. That's why he started talking without announcing himself.

"O-O-H Child? A little before your time, isn't it, Junior?"

Clint snorted, never tearing his eyes away from the book. "I regret sharing how old I am."

"No, you don't," Tony grinned, stepping further into the room. Clint gave a non-committal grunt in response. "Didn't know you could sing, Agent Barton. You are a man of many talents. Something else you pick up in SHIELD Academy?"

"From my mom actually," Clint admitted. A wistful smile formed on his lips. "She loved music. It was like her life. She had this friend that loved music just as much as her. She had this idea that she was going to make all these mixed tapes for her son so he could share the music from when she was young with him. Mom wanted to do the same with me and Barney. But Barney was a tone deaf bastard who didn't like music and our dad was just a bastard. So yeah, she used to sing to me all the time. And I guess I just picked it up from her."

Tony nodded. "I'm guessing O-O-H Child is a personal favorite, huh? Just never thought that would be your kind of music."

"It's a good song," Clint defended with a smile. "It's the kind of song that's so powerful that it could save the galaxy one day."

"Well we did save the world with a time displaced super soldier, an alcoholic narcissistic genius, an archer, a gun wielding assassin, an alien god and a giant green rage beast. So stranger things could probably happen. Like the galaxy being saved by a song from the 70s."

"I knew there was a reason I talked to you."

Tony snorted. "Whatever happened to your mom's friend? Did her kid end up loving music like she planned? Clearly worked with you."

"Don't know. I didn't really get a chance to know either of them very well. She died of cancer when I was like four. Her son disappeared the day she died. Then my mom died two years later. I never really gave either one of them much thought for awhile after that."

Tony was instantly sorry he asked. He was starting to really understand that while the Loki situation was horrible, it was far from the most terrible thing that happened to the younger man in his painfully short years of existence. And yet he never seemed to complain. Outside of his little stunt with the resignation letter, he never really seemed to draw attention to himself. He still was able to show compassion to others and to trust. He was kind of inspirational… if Tony was the type of person that needed inspiration of course.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Clint asked, peering over the top of his book. Tony just grinned. Clint glared. That's when Tony finally recognized the cover of the book the other man was reading.

"Harry Potter?" he asked, crossing his arms over his chest. The corners of Clint's mouth ticked up. "Didn't take you for a fan of Hogwarts's Finest."

"If you're only going based on fame then yes, Harry would be Hogwarts's finest. But if you're going from a purely academic perspective then it's kind of obviously Hermione. Harry really only gets by because of that whole Boy that Lived shtick."

"Oh my god, you're a Harry Potter nerd!"

Clint finally tore his eyes away from the book to frown in Tony's direction. Tony bit back a smile as he noticed the slight flush in the archer's cheeks. "Shut up, Tony!"

"Where'd you get the books anyway? This is the first time I've seen you reading since we got here."

"Birthday gift," Clint replied somewhat hesitantly. "From Phil. He gave me the first four books on my first birthday with SHIELD. He kept adding to them through the years. But they were lost when my old apartment burned down a few years ago." He patted a box on the floor beside him. "He replaced them all and got me The Lord of Rings series and The Hunger Games."

"You really like reading, huh?"

"Growing up…. That's really all I could do. I read everything I could get my hands on. When I joined SHIELD, that's how Phil got me to start opening up. He bought me off with books. He just started leaving them around. One time I found one in my sniper's nest."

"Nerd," Tony teased. He flopped down on the sofa. Clint stretched out a foot to kick him on the thigh. Tony laughed and pulled the younger man's legs so they were resting on his lap. Clint gave him a look, shrugged and picked up his book again. Tony leaned his head, enjoying the peace and quiet, especially after yet another argument with Annette. The silence was comfortable and almost familiar. It felt… nice.

"You know it's not just Blaine I want to move in the Tower, right?" Tony finally asked. He glanced out the corner of his eye to see Clint's grip on the book tighten minutely. "Puck and Santana are joining the Academy and they're going to be in New York anyway. They're moving in and that means that Steve will move in too. Bruce has gotten spoiled by clean running water and indoor plumbing, so he's moving in. Thor, well, it's Thor. Pretty sure he'll be bouncing back and forth between Jane and us. So that really only leaves our spies up in the air."

Clint shifted but he didn't leave. He took a deep breath. "You really want us to move in?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I, uh, I don't know. I mean you want me to be around your son full time?"

"Uh, you've been around my son full time this entire month."

"Yeah, but that's different. We knew it was short term. You're asking me to move in permanently."

"Well, do you have somewhere else to go?" Clint shook his head minutely. "So there shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Clint chewed on his lip and it was the most uncertain Tony had seen the younger man since he declared that the man was Blaine's uncle. They were making progress but there was still clearly so much more work they all needed to do to convince Clint that he belonged.

"Have you given any thought to what you're doing once we leave Ohio? I mean are you going back to SHIELD?"

Clint let out a breath. "I actually don't know. Phil mentioned something about working with a team that Fury set up for him. I don't think I'm on that team. So I really don't know where I'm going after this."

Tony nodded. "Well, you it seems like the Avengers will still be a thing. You know you always have a place there." Clint didn't say anything. He instead kept looking at his book but Tony knew he wasn't reading anymore. Finally after a few tense minutes, Clint spoke again.

"You didn't tell his mother," Clint mumbled. Of all the things he could've said, that was definitely not what Tony was expecting. Tony arched an eyebrow as Clint finally put the book down and met his gaze. "Blaine's mom. You didn't tell her that he's moving in with you. And you only said that you wanted him to move in. You know he's moving in, right?"

Tony sighed. "I know I want him to… but Annette is also right. I'm a superhero. How am I supposed to raise a kid in between barely running a company and trying to save the world?"

"What is it that you told me when I asked you what an uncle does? You told me that Blaine was different. He didn't need anything extra. Why do you think he would need anything more once he moves in with you? I think that would be more than enough. I didn't know Blaine before, kind of obviously. But I did talk to Puck and Sam and they've both told me that he seems happier now. And that's just because you're here. Trust me, that's all he wants. That's all any kid wants. To have their parents around."

Tony exhaled slowly. "Kind of like you and Phil?"

"Yeah," Clint admitted, chewing on his lip again. "Before… I didn't have anything that was constant. Then I got Phil and he was the only constant thing I had in my life. I have Nick and Melinda sometimes but I know that they would both lie to me in a heartbeat if they thought that they had to. Phil was the only one I could trust till Nat came along. Now there's all of you. It's scaring me a little to be completely honest. I really don't want to lose this or wreck it because that's what I do. I ruin things because I can't deal. Good things don't happen to me that often."

"I'm sure you've read my file before. You know who I was before I built the suit. I was very far from a good man. And the only the only people I could let in were Pepper and Rhodey. I barely let Cooper in and he's my kid. So trust me, this whole Avenger thing scares the hell out of me too. But I'm willing to give a shot. Maybe we could try this together?"

Clint met his gaze and nodded slowly. "Is it still going to be Stark Tower?"

"Nah, most of the letters in Stark fell off thanks to Thor and Loki's sibling squabble. Oh and the huge alien invasion. Funny thing though, every letter but the A broke off. I thought it might be my sign. I was actually thinking of naming it the Avenger Tower. What do you think?"

"I think… that this could work," Clint gave him a small smile. Then he frowned. "We get our own rooms right? Like I could have my own floor?"

"Sure," Tony shrugged. "Why?"

"Because there is no way in hell I want to be anywhere near Blaine and Sam once they move to New York and he's away from the epic fail that is that half in-half out relationship thing he's doing with Kurt."

Tony's brow furrowed. "You have gossip on my son and you're not sharing."

Clint smirked. "You'll figure it out eventually. Just know that you have nothing to worry about with Blaine. I think moving to New York is the best thing for him. Something out there wants all of them together. Starting to think something out there wants all of us together. So why fight it? And why worry about it? Let's just see it through."

Tony nodded. "When did you get so smart?"

Clint held up his book while his other hand idly tapped the box on the floor. "I read."

"Yeah? Well, read to me."

Clint grinned, reaching into the box and pulling out Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban. "I know it's not the first one. But it's kind of my favorite."

Tony grinned. "Mine too."

"Cool," Clint mumbled before opening the book and starting to read out loud.

Tony closed his eyes and relaxed to the sound of Clint's voice. He knew Blaine considered the rest of the Avengers to be his uncles and aunt, and he was fine with that. He encouraged it even because he wanted Blaine to have a family. And he trusted the rest of his team to protect his son. But while he was starting to make progress in his relationship with Steve, Tony was a little more reluctant to consider the other Avengers to be his siblings... yet. It could still happen, maybe. Clint, however, was different. From the minute he locked eyes with Clint when the younger agent was hiding on the china cabinet, Tony knew he had all but actually adopted him as family. He liked to think it worked both ways. He didn't see Clint reading out loud to Bruce or Steve. So yeah, Clint was different. Clint was the little brother he never got to have but finally found. He was definitely keeping the archer close by.

As he started to drift off, he made a mental note to have Pepper look into the intricacies of adopting a sibling. That was a thing, right? People did that? Oh, well he's rich. He could make it happen. And he totally would too. On that note, he was definitely arranging for a name change for Blaine too. Blaine Michael Anderson? Please, Blaine Anthony Stark was so much better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone else love that blink and you missed it Guardians of the Galaxy comment that now makes me want to write them into the damn story. Like I don't have enough characters already Lol


	7. I Believe We'll Be Okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the pool people are suspicious and a wild plot appears.

Something wasn't right. Clint didn't know exactly what it was but there was just something about today that didn't seem right. It wasn't even that he was currently piloting a jet to Canada. That didn't bother him so much actually. He was starting to get a little stir crazy just hanging out at the Anderson home, so this simple mission was a blessing in disguise. Fury assured them it would be a short one. They were simply to investigate the rumbles that HYDRA was making a comeback. According to Nick, he really didn't believe there was anything to that rumor but it wouldn't hurt to check it out. He assigned that task to Steve and Natasha. Naturally they were both offended that Clint wasn't asked to go as well and insisted that he come with them. When the trio announced they were leaving, Tony protested stating that he was going if Clint was going. Bruce chimed in that he wasn't going to be left behind. And Thor was there because… he was Thor. So now all six Avengers were off on a BS mission while the kids were home alone (well, alone with Jane, Darcy, Cooper and the Anderson couple).

"One of us should've stayed," Clint mumbled out loud. That's what was bothering him. They were too far away. Fury was back in DC temporarily meeting with Secretary Pierce. Coulson was meeting with his new team (and no that didn't sting even a little). They would be back with plenty of time for the kids' graduation but the fact that they were all gone just wasn't settling right with Clint. Something seemed off. But he couldn't voice that aloud without seeming paranoid or even worse that he didn't trust the kids. He did trust them. They were smart and they were resilient. They could all easily be SHIELD trainees. That wasn't the problem. The problem was… well, he didn't know. He just knew that something wasn't right.

"What are you thinking so hard about?" Natasha asked, her voice was barely a whisper but still loud enough to fill the space between his seat and that of his lovely copilot.

"Just thinking how much of a mess Stark is going to have to deal with when we get back. You know they're going to throw a party while we're gone."

"I'm pretty sure Tony would be horribly disappointed if they didn't," Natasha countered with a smile. "You know his idea of teenagers comes from teen movies."

"Pretty sure mine does too," Clint argued. She smacked him on the arm.

"Really though, Hawk. What's going on in that weird brain of yours?"

He sighed. "I just feel like maybe we didn't all need to go on this, you know? Maybe I should've stayed behind. Or Thor or someone."

"Clint, the more people we have on this, the quicker we can solve it and be back home." Natasha tensed suddenly at the words that just left her mouth. "Home."

"So Lima, Ohio is home?"

He didn't need to look to know that she was rolling her eyes at him. "No, home is the Avengers and our little junior Avengers. And we're going to get back to that soon. We're just going to do this mission and then we can go back."

"Yeah, I guess," Clint shrugged. Natasha had a point. This was a simple recon mission. Chances are they wouldn't find anything. Really Clint was convinced this was just a way to get them out of the house. HYDRA was long gone thanks to Agent Carter, Howard Stark and the Howling Commandos. So the likelihood of them finding anything was slim to none. They would be back in Ohio before the day was over. But if there was some truth to the rumors, well then having the whole team there would be the best bet. It would be the quickest way to shut them down and keep them down. So Natasha was right and he was being paranoid. He glanced at his partner out the corner of his eye. "You sure you're feeling okay over there, Nat?"

"Of course, why do you ask?"

"I don't know. You're usually not the type to just blurt out your emotions. But now you're talking about families and homes and admitting that we're dating. Just want to make sure that you're not dying on me."

"Oh shut up!" Natasha hissed though he could hear the smile in her voice.

"Quick poll, would it be inappropriate to arrange for a keg to be delivered to the house tonight?" Tony asked. Clint arched an eyebrow but was happy that he wasn't the only one confused. "I'm just saying, if they're going to throw a party then they need to do it right."

"How do you even know they're going to throw a party? They seemed like they were just going to lay low and avoid Blaine's mom."

"I know," Tony sighed as if this was the most disappointing thing he ever heard. "Thankfully Cooper is there to pick up the slack from his terribly mature and overly responsible little brother. I really don't know where he gets that from."

"Do you even hear yourself when you talk?" Steve wondered. Clint didn't need to look to know that Tony's face was the picture of innocence and confusion. He had seen that particular expression a lot during the past month on both the face of Tony as well as his Mini Me. Despite his apparent lack of interest in throwing a house party, Blaine was Tony's son through and through. Although one did have to wonder where he got that maturity from.

Clint smiled softly at the thought of his self-appointed nephew. Maybe Natasha was right and this feeling was only because he felt comfortable and stable in Lima. For the first time he had more family than just Phil, Nick and Natasha. He found a few older brothers in Tony, Steve and Bruce, two little siblings in Puck and Santana, a weird yet loveable cousin in Brittany and nephews in Sam and Blaine. So the bad feeling was probably because this was the first time they were going on a mission since they met the kids. That had to be it. Satisfied with that conclusion, Clint sat back in the pilot seat and let the banter and bickering from his teammates flow over him. He slowly felt his earlier anxiety fade to nothing. Everything was going to be fine.

Everything was far from fine. Like seriously everything was completely screwed up. Blaine actually didn't know the necessary words to convey just how screwed up this situation was. First, he woke up to his father casually dropping that he and the rest of the Avengers were leaving for a few days to go on some mission in Canada. Then he gets told that Jane would be keeping an eye on them because technically they were still kids. His dad then muttered something about not throwing a party that Blaine knew wasn't so much an order against throwing a party but really a suggestion that they should be throwing a party. And that's where things got screwed up. Because Cooper and Darcy were taking that to heart. The two social misfits took one look at the other and realized they found a kindred soul in insanity. Blaine would be less concerned if he didn't know that his father was totally in approval of this.

"Dude, your dad just had a keg delivered to the house," Puck announced as they strolled from the parking lot towards McKinley High School. Blaine glanced back at him with an arched eyebrow. Puck held up his phone where brightly colored text announced a party at their place. "Yeah, pretty sure Cooper invited most of the upperclassmen. If you still have a house after this I would be surprised.

"Good thing we're moving, huh?" Blaine asked with a grin. He glanced over his shoulder at Sam, Santana and Brittany who were busily texting out further invitations. The trio had been recruited by Darcy on their way to school that morning. Not that any of them were entirely reluctant to get involved. Blaine was pretty sure that they all would've volunteered if Darcy hadn't pounced on them as soon as she saw them. "We're screwed."

"Uh huh," Puck murmured. Blaine glanced up to see that the older teen was distracted by something across the parking lot. There were a large group of men pulling supplies out of a van. The van was a typical supply van that bore the words "Peterson's Pool Repair" on the side. Blaine idly remembered something about the pool being broken recently. Looks like Figgins finally got around to fixing it. Took him long enough.

"What's wrong?" Blaine asked when it seemed that Puck wasn't going to move from that spot and was seemingly content with staring at the men. "Puck? You ok?"

Puck shook his head. "Yeah, sorry. I'm fine. Just… yeah, I spaced out a little." He mustered a smile before shoving his hands in his pockets. But Blaine noticed he kept glancing over at the pool men. That is until he ran into another distraction, this time in the form of one Rachel Berry. Blaine had to bite down on his lip to keep from laughing as they watched the pint sized diva trying to pull a rather large speaker out of the back of a moving van. Puck ran forward (a little too quickly… stupid super solider formula) to help her.

"Oh, thanks, Noah," Rachel said, sounding both flustered and happy. She smiled up at him. "You're stronger than I remembered." Puck's brow furrowed before he realized that he was holding a rather large speaker upright with only one hand. He grinned sheepishly and placed the speaker on the ground.

"What are you doing with all this crap?"

"Oh, well since I will be moving to New York soon, Dad and Daddy think that it's probably best if I donated the sound room equipment to someone worthy. And the glee club's equipment is sadly lacking. So I'm donating it to New Directions."

Puck smiled at her rambling answer and leaned against the open van door. "Ok, but why are you moving it by yourself? No offense, Berry, but I'm pretty sure that speaker weighs more than you do. Actually I know for a fact that the speaker weighs more than you."

Rachel hit him on the arm and Blaine knew for a fact that it hurt her more than it hurt him. "I'm not moving this by myself. I'm waiting for Finn. He had to get to school earlier this morning but he's going to meet me out here to help me bring the things inside."

"How late is he?"

"Only twenty minutes," she admitted. "But I sent him a text and he's on his way."

"You want me to help?"

Rachel shook her head. "You're sweet, Noah. But no. I'm ok. Finn will be out here soon and he can help. You should go. I'm pretty sure you have a party to plan."

Puck rolled his eyes. "That damn party… you're coming though, right?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," she smiled in response. "Besides I hear it's supposed to be the party of the century. Apparently nothing else will happen in our puny little lives that would be bigger than this."

"They didn't seriously write that…." Blaine trailed off as he opened the invitation on Facebook and yes, yes they did write that. And he knew that Darcy and Cooper meant it. Because it needed to be repeated that Blaine's brother and Puck's questionably sane cousin were teaming up to throw a party with the approval and guidance of Blaine's unquestionably insane father and the assistance of the equally off Santana, Brittany and Sam. Yeah, the house was a goner. Still it would be worth it just to see Puck and Rachel continue to do their weird, flirty and adorably awkward dance around one another.

Blaine reluctantly looked away from the future couple in the making to see if the other three had noticed. They stopped moving for sure but their whole focus was on the continued efforts to enable the destruction of the Anderson household. He shrugged and started to look back to Rachel and Puck when he noticed that the pool guys were watching them. As soon as they noticed his attention, they looked away consumed with getting their supplies and tools together but Blaine knew what he saw. They were totally looking at him. That was weird. But he brushed it off as catching Puck's paranoia. They were just the pool repair men. There wasn't anything more to it.

Blaine shed his earlier worries about pool guys and focused only on the upcoming party. There was nothing to be concerned about. This was the last day of school… well for them. Tony had worked it out with the school that none of them needed to come back after the graduation ceremony was over and done with. The school would be mailing their diplomas and final report cards straight to the newly minted Avengers Tower in New York at the conclusion of the school year. So this was the last day and Blaine was determined not to let paranoid thoughts of potential kidnappings ruin that for him. Nope, he was definitely not going to think about it… especially since Puck appeared to be prepared to think about it for him.

"Where's the security team?" Puck asked as they walked into the school. Normally there were at least two men stationed by the front door but now there was no one. Blaine felt an inkling of concern growing again but he pushed the thought out again. He was determined to believe that everything was fine.

"Hey, my phone just died," Santana muttered.

"Mine too," Sam chimed in. Brittany nodded. The trio looked up as if finally noticing they were inside the school building. "Where are the security dudes?"

Blaine glanced down at his phone and found that he also didn't have a signal. He didn't need to look to know that Puck was also lacking a signal. There were a few more disgruntled cries from the gathered students that confirmed the lack of signal was a thing. Blaine closed his eyes and let out a sigh. So yeah, this was definitely happening.

"Guys," Puck whispered, pulling the group to the side. "I think that something is definitely wrong. Grab as many of the gleeks as you can and get to the costume room in the auditorium."

"Why there?"

"It's the most secure room in this whole building," Santana answered for Puck. "It locks from the inside and there is only one key. Well two if you count the one Puck and I had made so we had somewhere private to bring our hookups. Not to mention it's pretty well hidden and it's big enough for all of us to fit in there."

"And Mrs. Cole doesn't believe in modern technology so there's a rotary phone in there," Puck finished. "I don't know what just killed all our reception but we may be able to make a call out with that phone. Now go."

Blaine huffed and started down a hallway when he felt a hand on his arm. "Not you, genius. You get your ass down there right away."

"Why just me? How do we even know they're here for me? They could be here for…." Blaine trailed off at the look on Puck's face. He definitely learned that one from Steve. So annoying. "Fine, I'm going down to the costume room to be hidden and protected while all my friends roam the halls and are moving targets."

"Glad you can see reason!" Santana grinned. "Britt, go with him and make sure that he stays there. Sammy, Puck, let's get the rest of the club." Both Sam and Puck nodded before splitting off to do just that. Santana held Blaine's hand for a brief moment. "I know you're angry right now but we just want you to be safe. And we don't want the rest of the glee club being used for leverage."

"I get it," Blaine sighed, realizing that his attitude wasn't helping. But he hated feeling helpless. "I really do. I just don't like it."

"You wouldn't be you if you did like this," Santana pointed out. She gave him a brief hug before weaving her way through the annoyed student body still complaining about their lack of reception. Brittany grabbed his arm and hurried them both down to the auditorium and backstage to the spacious costume room.

He felt bad about not warning the other students but he knew that for one his friends were right. These people weren't coming after the rest of the students. They were after Blaine and they probably weren't above using people against him. The glee club were his biggest weakness because he would definitely hand himself over to protect one of them… even Kurt. He also knew that Santana and Puck were taking their status as new SHIELD recruits very seriously and had been talking with Natasha and Clint way too much. They probably were already working on a contingency plan to deal with the potential cannon fodder that was the rest of the McKinley students. So it was really just a matter of waiting.

And wait he did. He waited as his anxiety rose. Brittany was sitting beside him holding onto his hand and offering silent support. She managed to find the phone and had gotten through to Darcy. She had just explained the situation when the phone lines were cut. And now they were completely cut off. Just when he felt like he was about the burst out of his skin, they heard the fire alarm ringing along with the sound of panicked screaming and running feet.

Both Brittany and Blaine looked up when they heard a pounding on the door. Bizarrely enough they recognized the pattern of the knocking. "New York State of Mind?" Blaine murmured. He rose to his feet and swung open the door revealing the pale and somewhat terrified faces of the glee club with Santana herding them in along with Sam and Mr. Schuester. Blaine let out a sigh of relief as they all walked into the room (even Kurt) that is until he noticed that Rachel and Puck weren't with them. Before he could even open his mouth, Sam was ready with an answer.

"Puck couldn't find Rachel and then he remembered she was outside in the parking lot waiting for Finn. But Finn forgot he was supposed to be out there. Again. So Rachel is just sitting out in the parking lot."

"Naturally that means that Puck has to go play hero," Brittany commented, rolling her eyes. "This is your fault, Finn."

"Actually," Artie drawled. "I think it's pretty safe to say that there is one person who we can all blame for this one." Blaine swallowed, prepared to take their anger. "This is hands down all your fault, Kurt!"

"Me? I'm not the one with the superhero billionaire father!"

"No, but you're the one that ran his mouth and told everyone about Blaine's superhero billionaire father!" Quinn retorted. Kurt looked indignant but no one was listening. Blaine smiled softly. At least they didn't all blame him. Even if his (ex?) boyfriend clearly did.

"Ignore Kurt," Brittany said, squeezing his hand. "He's an idiot. This isn't your fault. You definitely didn't want anyone to know. And you didn't ask for men to invade the school and try to kidnap you. I think Darcy got the message. So any minute now the Avengers should be coming to our rescue."

Blaine mustered a weak smile. He knew as well as Brittany that any rescue from the Avengers would be a long way in coming. They were most likely already in Canada. So it would take hours for them to regroup and fly back. Hours that they might not have depending on how serious these guys were about kidnapping Blaine.

Then there was another knock on the door. It was more hesitant. Santana motioned for the others to hang back (ignoring Will's protests about being the adult in the room) and she crept up to the door. She cracked it open to get a better look at who it was. She gasped in surprise before pulling someone in and closing the door tightly behind them.

Less than hour ago (was it really only an hour?!), Rachel Berry was the very picture of well put together. But now? Rachel wasn't in the habit of wearing a lot of makeup or spending hours on her hair but she always looked flawless. That is until now. Now she looked broken and scared…. Alone. Mercedes and Quinn were by her side the second she was safely ushered in the room. Blaine noticed Santana looking around as if Puck had slipped into the room unnoticed. When she finally realized he wasn't there and wasn't likely to be there any time soon, she turned on Rachel with wide, wild eyes.

"Where is he? Where is Puck?!"

Rachel shrank back from the visibly angry Latina. "They took him. The men that… they took him. They took Noah."

"Why would they do that? Why would they take him and not you?"

Blaine knew that Santana really didn't want Rachel kidnapped and thankfully Rachel got that as well as she continued to answer the rapid-fire questions being thrown at her by the mentally unhinged Santana.

"They took him because they know he's important to Blaine. They let me go to deliver the message that they have Noah. And they're going to kill him if they don't get Blaine by the end of the day. They said that they would contact you to tell you when and where the exchange is to take place."

Santana shook her head. "No. This isn't how… this shouldn't be happening now. We're not even agents yet. We haven't... He can't…." she trailed off, whirling around to meet Blaine's gaze. In that brief moment, he saw the dozens of emotions that Santana usually kept a tight lid on. Emotions that only her close friends could bring out of her.

He knew that Santana and Puck were close. They were damn near inseparable as kids, grew apart for a while in their early teen years but were back to being inseparable once again as if nothing ever happened to break that cycle. The pair practically shared a brain. If there was one thing or person that Santana Lopez valued in this world, it was Noah Puckerman. And something just dared to take that from her. He didn't really want to think about what she would do to get that back. Although he had a feeling that it was pretty much along the line of what he was prepared to do to get their friend back safely.

"No."

Blaine tensed as he noticed that Santana was still staring at him. "What?"

"No, you giving yourself up is not an option."

"They took Puck! They did it to get to me. If we just give them what they want, they'll give him back."

"Really?" Sam scoffed. "You really think those guys have any intention of handing Puck back over to us if they get you?"

"But it's better than nothing! We have to try something."

"Shut up!" Santana hissed, cutting him off. "Just shut up. Get this through that shellacked nightmare you call a head. Neither of you is an acceptable loss. I'm not letting you give yourself up because I can't lose you either. I can't lose any of you idiots. Now shut up and let me think about a plan that doesn't involve sacrifices and crap."

Blaine opened his mouth but wisely shut it as Santana threw him a dark glare. Brittany pulled him down onto the seat beside her. Sam sat on his free side, keeping him sandwiched between the two blondes. They watched as Santana paced, raking a hand through her hair. She stopped when her eyes landed on the bracelet on her left wrist. She then looked up at the still shaken Rachel who was being held by Finn.

"Did he have his bracelet on when they grabbed him?"

Rachel blinked but looked thoughtful. "Um, you mean the one that matches yours?"

"Yeah, that one."

"Yes, I believe he did…. Is that important?"

Santana beamed in her direction. "It is very important, Midget. Because our bracelets come with a tracker!"

"A what?" was the chorused and well harmonized response from the rest of the glee club. Santana rolled her eyes.

"I have heard the stories from Natasha. Clint is the absolute worst. And if Puck is picking him as a role model then it stands to reason that he'll be blowing himself up or going missing on an ongoing basis. I figure I'd get started on the creative tracker locations. So I gave this to him as a graduation present last week. Good timing too." Blaine continued to stare incredulously. "Oh come on. Try not to look so surprised. It was your dad that helped me."

Blaine gave a weak chuckle despite himself. Everything was still crap but he couldn't help but laugh at the idea of Santana forcing his father to make a tracker bracelet for Clint's new Mini Me (although not a fair or accurate nickname since Puck was taller than Clint). But with the knowledge that they could track Puck's location soon enough, Blaine felt a little better. He felt a lot better when he felt his phone buzzing in his pocket. Santana, Brittany and Sam were all looking at their own ringing phones. The quartet shared amused looks after realizing they were all being called by a member of the Avengers.

"Hey, Dad," Blaine answered, keeping an idle eye on his friends.

"Kid, what the hell is going on? Your school was taken over by pool cleaning ninjas?"

"What?"

"Darcy called Steve and sat that Brittany told her that masked men with pool cleaning supplies took the school hostage!"

Blaine pinched the bridge of his nose. "They weren't masked. I don't even think those were really pool repair supplies. But that's not even the point. They came here for me, Dad. But they took Puck. They took him to get to me."

There was a pause as Tony listened to something on his end of the line. Finally he let out a deep breath. "Hey, kid. I want you to listen to me. Darcy is coming to get you guys and take you home. Try to relax. We're going to get Puck back. Natasha got the coordinates from the tracker already up. They didn't get very far and we're only a few hours out. We're going to get him back, I promise you."

Blaine closed his eyes, praying that the stubborn tears that were building wouldn't fall. As was the day's norm it seemed, his prayer went unanswered. He swiped angrily at the stray tear and turned his back on his friends and the rest of the club. "This is my fault, dad. They knew he was my friend and that's why they took him."

"Blaine, it's not fault. If anything it's my fault for being who I am. Or Steve's for knocking up Peggy 70 years ago." He stopped again as Steve let him know how he felt about that. "Look, I know you're probably blaming yourself for this but I need you to keep it together for now. We're going to get him back. When have I ever broken a promise to you?"

"Never," Blaine murmured. "Thanks, dad."

"Anytime, kiddo. I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Okay," Blaine swallowed the lump in his throat. "Love you, dad."

"Love you too, sap."

Blaine smiled softly as the phone disconnected. He took a deep soothing breath and finally looked up to meet the others. Santana gave him an encouraging smile which helped to calm him a little more.

"Let's go. It's Darcy. She probably started driving here the second she got off the phone with Brittany. She should be here already."

Blaine nodded absently and let Sam and Brittany start maneuvering him towards the door. He felt like he was in a fog. Everything was happening around him in some sort of hazy shimmer. He didn't know how long this was going to last… or if it was ever going to end. What he did know that is that he wanted his bed, his dad and Puck. Maybe not necessarily altogether or in that order. But those were the three things that he felt the universe owed him right now. That's what he needed to be ok.  
____________________________________________________________________________________  
Blaine was not okay. Santana was actually really concerned that he might be going into shock or something. She wasn't exactly a medical expert but she did have some experience with shock. She was there when Puck broke his ankle once. He claimed he was fine at first but then the pain hit along with the fading. She was pretty adept at reading Puck's mental state through his eyes and she saw that his attention and focus was drifting in and out. Not unlike Blaine at the moment.

The four friends left the rest of the glee club still in the costume room. They had done their part in keeping them safe. The danger was over now. Now they needed to work on the recovery part and they didn't need any of the gleeks for that. Just each other. Sadly, it seemed as those a few of the gleeks missed the memo where their presence wasn't needed.

"Wait," Rachel called out. Santana sighed and turned around to see Rachel followed closely by Kurt running towards them. "We're coming with you."

"No, you're not," Santana countered. Rachel opened her mouth. "Ok, look, Berry. Here's the thing. I don't actually hate you anymore. You're kind of nice and we probably could be actual friends. But the thing is that you have this weird back and forth shit going on with Puck that I really need you to stop. Because it gives off mixed signals and it's not you that has to deal with the fallout, it's me. And I'm tired of dealing with it. Besides, he's got a lot going on in his life right now. And he doesn't need your indecisiveness messing with his head."

"I don't know what you're…." Rachel trailed off. Santana raised an eyebrow.

"Really, Berry? I've known you guys since we were kids. I know about your whole magical Jew connection. And I get it. Like I said, I kind of actually like you. I think you and Puckerman would be really awesome together. But I'm tired of watching him hurt because you can't figure out who the right guy is. So I'm not letting you near him until you figure it out. I couldn't protect him from being kidnapped but I can damn well protect him from getting his heart broken again."

Rachel swallowed, her face was a bright cherry red. "Oh, well, if you could just…."

"I'll call you when we get him back. I know he's your friend and you care. But we both know it's more than that. We both know and so does Puck. So do both of you a favor and figure out what you want before you hurt him."

"Right," Rachel nodded. "I, uh, I should probably get back….. Finn." She whirled on her heels and stalked away from the group as fast as possible for a girl that short.

"Damn, San," Sam mumbled. Santana gave him a look. He smirked. "Remind me not get on your bad side."

"You live on my bad side, Trouty Mouth. Let's roll."

Their efforts to move forward were once again in vain as they all heard the not at all subtle throat clearing behind them. In her haste to deal with the whole stunted Puckleberry nonsense, Santana forgot that Kurt was with Rachel and that he was still standing there. She snuck a glance at Blaine, hoping that he was still out of it. But of course, the universe was against her and Blaine was suddenly focused on his erstwhile boyfriend.

"You're not talking me out of this. I'm going with you," Kurt said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Clearly Blaine needs support and I'm his boyfriend. You're not going to try and bully me out of this, Santana Lopez."

"Seriously, Porcelain. I'm so not in the mood for this shit today. One of my best friends was kidnapped by people gunning for one of my other best friends. So cut the crap and take your ass back in that room with the others. Or not. I don't actually care just leave us the hell alone."

"Best friends?" Kurt repeated with an arched eyebrow. "You barely know him! You've been hanging out for a month and suddenly you're this happy little family? Admit it. You guys are only pretending to be his friend so you can get some of his father's money!"

Santana felt her jaw drop. Because really? He actually said that? He actually thought that? Wait, did Blaine think that? Did Tony? She looked up to similar expression on Brittany and Sam's face. They did come together very quickly. And it was after the whole Tony is Blaine's dad reveal but it was never about money to any of them. First it was comforting Blaine. Then it was chasing the feeling of belonging after their first meeting with the Avengers. Now it was all about their family. Blaine had to know that…. Right?

A sharp crack broke the silence in the hallway and Santana looked up in just in time to see Blaine pulling back from the damn near full body slap he just delivered. Well damn.

"Blaine?" Kurt asked, holding a hand to his no doubt stinging cheek.

"Are you just completely oblivious or just really that stupid?!" Blaine spat venomously. "You think San, Sam, Britt and Puck are here for my dad's money?! You think either me or my dad would be stupid enough to fall for that?! I know you don't get why we're suddenly all friends. Hell, we don't get it either but we are. I feel more comfortable with them than I have in probably my whole life. Furthermore you don't need to understand. You just need to accept it. And also accept that if you ever talk shit about my family again, I'll do a lot worse than just slap you."

"I don't know what's going on with you lately but…."

"You don't? You don't have even the slightest idea? My dad damn near died saving the world with a bunch of superheroes. He came back despite the odds and then you got jealous. You ran your mouth and now the whole world knows about me and my brother. Any of this ringing a bell? Anything?"

"Blaine, I…."

"This. Is. Your. Fault!" Blaine roared and Santana had to admit… she was a little turned on. "You opened your mouth and told I don't even know but it doesn't matter because it wasn't your secret to tell. It was mine. You're upset because you didn't know. But there was a reason that no one knew. It was to prevent shit like this from happening! But no! You got mad because I didn't tell you and now the world knows that my dad has a huge weak spot. Now my best friend is in danger because you felt jealous or left out or bitter that I didn't tell you something that you feel special knowing I actually considered telling you. I really did. I was really going to tell you one day. But now I know why I was right to hesitate."

"Blaine…."

"Shut up, I don't want to hear it. There is nothing you can say that will make this better. There is nothing you can say that will make this right. If anything happens to Puck…. Well, I don't even need to threaten you. I have the rest of the Avengers and Darcy for that. But for the record, because I'm pretty sure you do suffer from some sort of delusional thought disorder, you and I are done. So now you have an extra ticket for your aunt or Carole's coworkers, whatever the hell."

As soon as he was done, Blaine turned and all but sprinted away. Santana inclined her head towards Sam who nodded and left to find Blaine. Santana glanced at Kurt to find him paler than normal. His eyes were filling with tears. His cheek was starting to swell and there was a bruise forming already. And Santana just didn't give a damn. Nothing Blaine said was wrong. Hell, she was wondering why it took him so long to say it. He had clearly been feeling that way the whole time. Oh well. She glanced at Brittany, who was similarly unaffected by Kurt's tears.

"So we give them five minutes and then we follow?" Santana suggested. Brittany nodded, though there was a gleam in her eye. Santana smirked. "You've seen it too, huh?"

"Oh yeah," Brittany grinned. "Puck and I are starting a pool. Clint has forty down on a month after we move. Natasha picked two. Puck and I both think six months. Bruce said immediately following the next big disaster."

Santana pursed her lips thoughtfully. "I'm going to put forty down on Bruce's date. And what's the pool look like on how long it's going to take Tony to figure this all out?"

Brittany laughed. "Pretty much everyone is betting that he's going to figure it out only after TMZ catches a picture of them making out in an alleyway or something. Puck says he's willing to cheat and tip the paparazzi off too."

Santana giggled, letting the topic chase away the stress. There was nothing to worry about. The Avengers were on the situation. They would find Puck and they would bring him home. They had to because she couldn't lose him. Not when she just got him back. Not when they were about to start their awesome new lives in New York. Puck couldn't check out now. There was too much for them to do. They hadn't even begun to scratch the surface of what they were meant to become. There was no way she was losing Puck now.  
____________________________________________________________________________________  
When Sam caught up with Blaine in the parking lot, he didn't know what to expect. But it definitely wasn't what he found. And that was Blaine whaling on what appeared to be Kurt's car with a wooden 2x4. He waited for him to get a few good whacks in before tapping the shorter teen on the shoulder. Blaine whirled around ready for another confrontation only to come up short when face with Sam. The piece of wood dropped from his fingers and the tears Sam knew he had been holding back for a while started to well in his eyes. Sam didn't hesitate. He also didn't think. He simply reached forward and pulled Blaine into his arms.

At first they stood together awkwardly. Blaine's teary face was mashed into Sam's broad chest. His hands were clenched tightly into fists at his side. But then slowly he relaxed. His arms loosened to wrap around Sam's waist. He shifted his head so it rested more comfortably on Sam's shoulder. The change in their embrace allowed Sam to rest his head against Blaine's. The faint tremors he felt in his friend's body faded as Blaine finally gave in, collapsing bonelessly against Sam.

"What's going on, Blaine? Tell me what's wrong."

"Everything," Blaine whispered. "Puck's been kidnapped because of me. The whole school was almost taken hostage and would've been if it wasn't for Santana and Puck. You know, the friend that was kidnapped because of me. My ex-boyfriend is an asshole and slapping him actually kind of hurt. I think his face may really be made out porcelain. The glee club probably hates me. And we're totally going to have to cancel the party and deal with Darcy and Cooper. And they're insanely annoying. Heavy emphasis on the insane."

Sam laughed softly, happy to hear Blaine attempt a little levity at least. "Well you left out the worst part."

"And that is?"

"Having to pay your asshole of an ex-boyfriend for damages to his car."

Blaine snorted. "Yeah, I was hoping that we could just pass this off as being from the kidnappers? What do you think?"

"Yeah, that works," Sam agreed. He hugged Blaine a little tighter. "You with me now? Because we need you."

"You guys don't need me. Puck definitely doesn't need me. This is my fault," Blaine pulled away and Sam mourned the loss of him in his arms more than he thought he would. Then he caught what Blaine just said. "Seriously, my entire existence causes problems. My parents argue all the time. Cooper resents me and the connection I have with our dad. Now look I put everyone in danger. It would be better if I just disappeared."

Okay, that was enough of that nonsense. He yanked Blaine back towards him again. He rested his head against Blaine's forehead and closed his eyes.

"You listen to me, Blaine Stark. It would not be better if you disappeared. Not for me or for anyone, especially not your dad. Tony loves you. We all do. So I get why you're feeling this way but you're wrong. We need you…. I need you."

"Sam," Blaine started but Sam shook his head cutting him off.

"Nope, not listening. You're wrong. I need you, Blaine. Even if you don't believe it, it's true. Right now our best friend is missing and I'm scared out of my mind. So I need you to help me get through this, ok?"

He felt Blaine nod. "Okay. Its okay, Sammy. I'm here. I swear."

Sam didn't realize how much he needed those until he heard Blaine say them. He pulled him in closer, breathing the other teen in and letting himself relax if only just for a moment. "I am really scared," he admitted. "I don't want to lose Puck but I can't lose you either."

"It's okay," Blaine murmured, rubbing his hands along Sam's back. "You're not going to lose either of us. My dad and the rest of the Avengers are on it. They're going to fix this. You're definitely not going to lose me because I'm right here with you. I'm right here."

"We're here too," Brittany said as she and Santana emerge from the building. The two girls slid into their hug naturally like they've all been doing this for years. All around them was chaos as emergency workers tended to the frightened students and confused parents and teachers. But within their group hug, everything was calm. The whole world ceased to exist for that one perfect moment… that is until Darcy started pounding on the car horn while Cooper yelled dramatically in the background.

They jumped apart and then laughed at the sudden intrusion of the real world. They all ignored how they were each wiping away tears.

"When this is all over," Santana started as they walked towards Darcy and Cooper. "I say we wrap Puck in bubble wrap and forbid him from leaving our collective eye sight."

Sam laughed and felt even more relieved when he heard Blaine laugh as well. It was going to be okay. He believed it now. Everything was going to be okay.  
____________________________________________________________________________________  
When Tony was first faced with the prospect of becoming a father, he swore that he wasn't going to flake on his kid. He would never make a promise that he had no intention of keeping. He never wanted his son to think of him the way that the rest of the world did. And he was good with that. He never made a promise to Cooper or Blaine that he couldn't keep. He would move heaven and hell for his sons and they both knew it. So when he promised Blaine that he was going to bring Puck home safe, he meant it. He didn't think it was going to be a promise he wasn't going to be able to keep. They were the damn Avengers. They just saved the world. Like hell they couldn't save a teenager.

But as they touched down at the location of Puck's tracker, Tony was faced with the sudden reality that maybe they couldn't save a teenager. His eyes widened as he stared at burning building in front of them. Almost as if on cue, there was a loud explosion from within the ruins of what was once a long abandoned science lab on the outskirts of Lima. The force of the blast rocked the jet and the six Avengers crowded together inside. The left side of the building completely collapsed.

"Noah?" Steve whispered quietly. It was his voice that snapped them out of their surprised stupor. Tony cleared his throat.

"JARVIS, do a scan for any sign of life inside that building."

"Scan complete. There are no signs of life inside the facility. The fire has been burning for well over twenty minutes."

"Scan again," Tony ordered, his voice shaking on the command. There was no way in hell they were only twenty minutes late.

"Sir, scan is complete. There are no signs of life. The heat of the fire and the smoke have insured that there are no survivors."

Steve shook his head and turned to exit the plane. Clint and Thor raced out after him. Tony watched as Steve made it just a few feet away from the building. He was close enough to see the devastation for himself. Tony hoped that he would see something they might have missed. Something that meant that there was a chance that Puck survived this but instead he saw Steve collapse to his knees. Clint and Thor kneeled down beside him in silent mourning of their own. Tony fought the urge to fall down himself.

It wasn't even that the kid was his son's best friend. He genuinely liked Puck. The kid was smarter than he gave himself credit for and he was loyal. He was a good kid and he didn't deserve this. He didn't deserve to die in some godforsaken building in the middle of nowhere without anyone there for him. He didn't deserve to die probably scared and alone. Steve didn't deserve to lose one of the only family members he had alive. Blaine, Santana, Sam and Brittany didn't deserve to lose a best friend. God, he had no idea how the hell they were supposed to tell the kids that Puck was….

"Sir, scanners are indicating that there is now a sign of life. Just one. But the smoke and debris are interfering with the system. I cannot get an accurate read on who it is but it's moving towards the right side of the facility."

Bruce and Natasha met his gaze and nodded as they all ran out of the jet. By the time they made it to where their other three teammates were still kneeling, they saw a figure stumbling blindly out of the building. Even from where he was standing, Tony could see that the person was limping heavily and covered in ash. He didn't have a clear visual but he didn't need to. The surprised bark of laughter coming from Clint gave him all the answers he needed. Steve was on his feet in the next second and running to meet the bedraggled teen before he hit the ground. The rest of the team was surrounding them less than a minute later.

"Hey, what took you guys so long?" Puck asked with a tired grin. His voice sounded hoarse. There were visible bruises on his face and neck. He was covered in soot. And the eyes that reminded Steve of his mother were too bright and not quite dilating properly. Tony knew he wasn't the only one that thought Puck was the most beautiful thing he'd seen all day.

Steve held the teen closer and laughed tearfully. "You know. There was traffic."

"Can we go home now, Gramps?"

"Yeah, we can go home now."

Puck blinked blearily in Steve's direction, a dopey smile playing on his lips. "Hey, you didn't veto it."

"No, I didn't," Steve smiled with wet eyes. "I kinda like it honestly." 

Tony had a feeling that Steve would be going along with whatever ridiculous nickname Puck came up with for quite some time. He had a feeling that Puck was definitely going to exploit that to hilarious expense. Well, he would once he woke up anyway. Steve shifted the now unconscious teen into a more comfortable hold. Tony couldn't even find it in himself to mock the sappily fond look on Steve's face. Puck wasn't just Steve's great grandkid, he was pretty much his son. And Tony knew what it was like to fear something happening to his kids. So he definitely wasn't going to belittle Steve in this moment. 

Bruce cleared his throat dragging Tony out of his thoughts. His fellow scientist threw Tony a pointed look. He nodded, holding up his tablet to let JARVIS run a cursory medical scan on Puck. He was doing surprisingly well all things considered. There was some sort of sedative in his system, a few bruises and burns along with a mild case of smoke inhalation but to say that he just walked out of the burning remains of a rather large building, he was actually doing pretty well.

"I think he's going to be okay," Bruce said to Steve after looking at the results himself. "Let's just get him checked out anyway. We don't want him developing bad habits."

"Why do I feel like that was directed at me?" Clint mused with a grin. Natasha rolled her eyes at her partner.

"Possibly because Bruce was the one that had to threaten to Hulk out to get you checked out in Medical following the Invasion."

"Yeah, and you still managed to escape," Bruce chided, ushering the archer towards the jet. Steve followed behind with his precious cargo still knocked out in his arms. If he was heavy, Steve made no complaints about the weight. If anything he looked like he might just fight the person who suggested moving him. Tony let it go.

Tony settled back in his seat opposite Steve and Puck. The teen was still out for the count but was now sprawled across Steve's lap. Steve was looking down at him like if he blinked for just a minute the kid would be gone. Tony was very familiar with that feeling so he didn't bother to comment. Thor was flying alongside the jet. Clint and Bruce were still bickering in the front with Natasha playing the role of biased referee. Because yeah, she acknowledged that her partner's self-preservation skills were severely lacking but she also was dating the fool so her bias was clear. Tony just took it all in and let himself relax. They got Puck back. He didn't have to mourn the loss of an amazing human being. He didn't need to tell his son that his best friend was dead. He didn't need to watch Steve cope with losing such a huge part of his new world. They didn't get the Intel on the HYDRA rumors but Nick said that he was sending another agent team out there to investigate. Clint vouched that Garret and Triplett would get the job done. So Tony trusted in that and decided to focus on what was really important: this makeshift bizarre family he found over the last month.

Yeah, everything was going to be okay.


	8. And The Plot Thickens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a wild plot actually appears, Blaine & Cooper bond and Puck is more his great grandparents' kid than he thought.

They were barely through the front door when Blaine suddenly found himself wrapped tightly in the supposedly loving and warm embrace of his mother. He couldn't help the ingrained instinct that had him looking for a camera. He found the man lurking on the edges of the porch. He wasn't even remotely surprised. It was a proven fact that his mother was incapable of showing maternal affection for anyone other than Cooper. So he wasn't surprised that this little display was all for show. Because for all that she claimed that Tony was the bad parent because his life was in the spotlight, Blaine knew she was regretting the fact that she left him and his spotlight. He pushed his histrionic mother away and walked into the house knowing that Santana, Sam and Brittany were following. Unfortunately, so was said histrionic mother.

"I told your father this would happen. Are you okay?" Annette asked as she too walked into the house, closing the door behind her. Blaine looked around wondering where the camera was this time. "Blaine, look at me. I asked you a question."

"Yeah, I know. I'm just trying to figure out where the camera is so I know which direction to look in while we have this little heart to heart chat."

"There aren't any cameras in here. I was worried about you. You're my son."

For a moment, he actually let himself believe that. But only for a brief moment. He shrugged instead of saying anything. Part of him wanted to escape to the other room where his friends were sitting with the genuinely worried Darcy. But guilt kept him out here with his mother who hasn't worried about him since he was seven and he broke his arm falling on the jungle gym at school. That might have been more a show for the hospital but he let himself believe it was because she cared about him.

"This is why I kept your father away," Annette continued. "I knew prolonged exposure to that man would only end in tears. And now look, your little friend is probably dead and it's all his fault. The only good thing Tony Stark ever did for us was disappear in Afghanistan. Of course he screwed that all up by coming back!"

"Shut up," Blaine hissed. Annette's eyes widened. "Just shut up, mom! Because you have no idea what you're talking about. Dad has been more supportive of me in the last four years than you have in all seventeen years of my life. Including right now! Puck isn't dead. He's not. Dad is going to find him. He promised."

"Oh, he promised," Annette repeated, sarcasm dripping. "I'm familiar with his promises. Tony will let you down, Blaine. That's what he's good at."

"He hasn't let me down in four years."

"He will. He will disappoint you eventually. He always does."

"The only way he could disappoint me would to take back his offer to live with him full time. But I don't think he's planning on doing that."

"He offered you what?"

"Yeah he asked me to move into the Tower with him and the rest of the Avengers."

"And what did you tell him?"

"What do you think I told him, mom?"

"Well I hope it was no. Your father doesn't know the first thing about raising a teenager."

"And you do?" Blaine countered. "For the record, I said yes. Of course I said yes."

"No. I forbid it."

Blaine felt his jaw drop slightly. Seriously? She actually thought... Wow. He often wondered growing up if his mother was delusional or a special brand of oblivious that prevented her from seeing how alone he felt in his own family. Now he knew the truth. His mother was a cold hearted manipulative lunatic. Because seriously? She really thought she had a say in this? He fought in the urge to laugh in her face.

"Mom, you're never even here. You and Stan go off for weeks, sometimes months at a time. So why do you care of I'm living with Dad or not? Why would want to keep me here when you can't even managed to stay for more than a few days?"

"Because the child support checks she gets for you funds those trips," a new voice chimed in from the doorway of the living room. Both mother and son looked up to see Cooper leaning casually in the doorway. His face was unusually serious and focused. "Mom only wants you around because Dad pays her a lot of money to keep you in school and happy. Mind you the things that actually make you happy come from Dad directly. But whatever. Mom doesn't want to let you go because then she would be giving up those checks. That's why she kept me around for so long before Dad found out about you."

"Cooper! That's not true. You're my son and I love you. You know that."

"I do. I actually do know that. I know in your own twisted weird way, you do love me. But I also know that you don't love Blaine. Not the way you should. Not nearly as much as he deserves. And that's because he looks like Dad and it bothers you so much that you pushed your own son away. Now you're just holding on to him because you don't want Dad to win. You know that Blaine is the only thing you have to hold over him now. He certainly isn't looking to hook up with you anymore."

Annette flushed a brilliant shade of red. Blaine wanted to be surprised that his mother apparently cheated on his stepfather but he wasn't. Tony wasn't her first affair and probably wouldn't be the last either.

"Tell me that I'm wrong, Mom. Tell me that nothing I said was true. Tell me that you're not keeping Blaine here because you don't want Dad to win in this imaginary war that you're raging against him for not breaking down without you."

"You are wrong, Cooper. I love you and Blaine very much. I may not always say it or show it but I hope you of all people would've seen that."

"Then do the right thing, mom. Let Blaine go live with our Dad."

"Tony Stark is not your father! He's only Blaine's father in blood and nothing more. Stanley Anderson has been more of a father to both of you than Tony. That is why you are Cooper and Blaine Anderson."

"No," Blaine mumbled, shaking his head. "No, that's not my name. It's what's on my birth certificate, yes, but Blaine Michael Anderson is not who I am. Not even in the slightest bit. Stanley Anderson is not my father in any sense of the word. He has always kept me at arm's length. At least when I was a kid, he kind of kept his negative feelings relatively under wraps around me but now he just openly resents me. He hates that I like to build things. He hates that I look like Dad. He hates that I'm gay. He hates me in general. I think he somewhat likes Cooper."

"On rare occasions," Cooper interjected. Blaine shrugged.

"So yeah, Stanley Anderson is not my father. I don't want his last name. I definitely don't want his father's name as my middle name. Despite whatever delusion about a happy family you have, Stanley Anderson has never even wanted to be my father. But from the minute he met me about thirteen years later than he should have, Tony Stark has. He's proud to be my father. And he wants to raise me. And he's going to. It really doesn't matter what you say. I'm going to live with Dad. You can't stop that. I really suggest that you don't even try."

For the second time in less than an hour, Blaine found himself stalking away from someone he was meant to love but really barely liked anymore. If he was really honest with himself, it was harder this time. This was his mother. She was supposed to love him unconditionally. She was supposed want what was best for him. How could she ever think that Stanley Anderson was what was best for him? Maybe it was like Cooper said. Maybe his mother kept him around so she could fly around the world on Tony's dime. How did he miss that? How did Cooper see that and he didn't? It's Cooper!

"Puck got kidnapped for me and Cooper is actually right about something," he muttered, sliding down the wall just outside his room. "The world has officially gone insane."

He grunted as he felt a sharp kick to his shin. He glanced up not really surprised to see Cooper standing over him. He raised an eyebrow. "I resent that, little brother."

"You followed me?" Blaine asked, pointlessly as Cooper sat down beside him.

"Of course, I did. I remember Sam told me about what happened at the school. Pretty sure it would kill poor Step Stan if you went all Britney on his car. I had to make sure I was there to stop you… or film it. Dad would murder me if I didn't get footage of that one."

Blaine snorted, leaning his head back against the wall. "You know how I always thought you didn't like me when we were kids. Well actually, I know you didn't like me when we were kids. Anyway when we met Dad, I figured it out. I got why you didn't like me. It's because I was his biological kid and not you."

"At first, yeah," Cooper agreed with a heavy sigh. "I did kind of hate you. I knew that Dad wanted a kid like him and I was the furthest thing from him. But then I realized that I got a childhood with him. Yeah, I have Step Stan's last name but I know that Tony Stark is my father. I grew up with him. And you didn't. You didn't get what you needed from anyone in your life. And that's not fair, Blaine. I'm sorry that I was a crappy brother to you growing up."

"You had your moments," Blaine countered, bumping his shoulder against Cooper's.

"You got Dad's genes but I got him growing up. That wasn't right. And I'm glad that you're finally getting the chance to have that now. This past month has shown me how screwed up it was that mom kept you away. Having you around has been just as good for Dad as it has been for you. Don't let mom ruin this for you, bro. You and Dad are pretty hilarious together. Don't let her stop you."

"I won't," Blaine whispered. Cooper slung an arm around his shoulders pulling him in close. "Thanks, Coop."

"No problem, little brother," Cooper replied. "Just don't forget about me while you're living it up in New York."

Blaine pulled away and grinned. "You know you can come with us, right? I mean you're doing the whole acting thing. I'm sure there are better work opportunities out in New York than here in Ohio. Plus there's the whole living in Stark Tower thing. And then there's Darcy."

Cooper flushed slightly and looked away. "What about Darcy?"

"Really? You two are like cut from the same bizarre cloth. You better hop on that, bro. A girl like that is not going to be strung along too long."

"What do you even know about girls?"

"I hang out with Santana and Brittany. What don't I know about girls?"

"Touché."  
____________________________________________________________________________________

Nearly five hours after he was kidnapped, Puck's friends received a phone call telling them to meet the Avengers at Lima General. There was a brief moment of panicked flailing as they all struggled to understand why Puck was at the hospital and not coming home. Was he injured? It must have been really bad if they didn't just treat it at home. Was he dying? Was he already dead? The entire drive to the hospital passed in a haze for the exhausted and anxious teenagers (and Darcy and Cooper). They would all go on record later by saying that they remembered very little between the initial phone call and then bursting through the door to Puck's private hospital room.

Blaine remembered gasping and almost breaking down in tears at the way too still figure sleeping on the bed. There were several bandaged wounds on his forehead and arms. There were vivid bruises that stood out against too pale skin. But what really caught his (and the rest of the teens') attention was the mask covering Puck's mouth. When Bruce called, he merely told them to come to the hospital. He hadn't told them about Puck's physical condition. They didn't know what they expected to find but it wasn't this. This wasn't supposed to be happening. Puck wasn't supposed to be broken because some assholes with a grudge against Blaine's father took his best friend to get to him.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Steve said from behind them. They all whirled around to see Captain America smiling softly at them. There was some obvious tension around his eyes but he seemed at ease. He ushered them further into the room.

Now that they were actually inside and not hovering outside the door, Blaine could see that Clint was sitting in a chair by Puck's bed with his head tilted back. Natasha was perched in the window watching over them both. Bruce was leaning against a wall, reading through a chart while Tony was tapping on his ever present tablet. All of them stopped once they realized the teens were in the room.

"You bastard!"

Blaine jumped as his mother went flying into the room screaming obscenities at his father. On his part, Tony just seemed to accept her verbal tirade and hardly seemed confused or concerned about it. Blaine would settle for being confused for him then because really? Where the hell did she come from? She wasn't with them the whole time… was she?

"How dare you try to steal my son from me? You think spending a month with him is enough time to prep you to be a parent?! It's not! Especially when stuff like this happens! What if they had gotten Blaine? Then it would've been our son in that bed. And it would've been your fault!"

"Like how it's my fault that Puck is in that bed right now?" Blaine countered. Annette opened her mouth to counter argue when Tony cut her off.

"Annie, I get that the whole Blaine moving in thing probably came up finally and that it's thrown you for a bit of a loop, but it doesn't really matter what you think. All that matters is what our son wants. If he wants to come with me, I'm not going to stop him. And neither are you."

"We'll see about that! You think that any judge in the world is going to give you custody when your life is constantly surrounded by danger? It doesn't matter how much money you have! You are never going to get our son."

Predictably it all went downhill from there as the other Avengers joined in the previously family only argument. It was because they were all so preoccupied playing who can yell the loudest that they missed the first sign off annoyance from the person on the bed. But they all heard it a moment later when Puck snapped the mask off of his face and threw it across the room with a loud crash.

"Can everyone please just shut the fuck up?" A heavy surprised silence fell over the room at the raspy and hoarse bellow. Puck coughed and took a wheezing breath as they all turned to look at him. His breathing sounded horrible but he was awake and talking and that was more than enough for Blaine. Even if he did look like road kill.

Bruce was by his side in a flash, pausing only to pick up the discarded mask. He hooked it up again with practiced skill and eased it back onto Puck's face. Bruce instructed him on how to take deep breaths and get the most oxygen. Gradually the chest rattling and wheezing eased. Blaine watched as he lowered the mask and focused his attention on Annette.

"I hate to break it to you but your argument doesn't hold a lot of water, Mrs. Anderson. The kidnappers weren't after Blaine. They got exactly who they wanted."

"Wait, what?" Santana held up a hand. "But they grabbed you to get to Blaine…. Right?"

"No," Puck shook his head. He paused, taking another deep breath from the mask. "That's what they said and that's what I thought too. But it's because I think they know about me… and what's in my blood."

"What?" the Avengers chorused together. "How the hell would they know that? Wait, how do you know that?"

"What's in your blood?" Sam and Santana asked in unison. Puck smirked.

"Last year, I got a physical and they said that my blood results were a little weird. But they couldn't pinpoint exactly what. They just said that I was secreting some extra hormone or something. They wanted me to follow up with a doctor but I felt fine and I hate doctors, so yeah. Then this year, I met my great granddad over there. After that it wasn't hard to figure out that I'm somehow producing the serum. That's what the extra hormone is."

Blaine blinked in surprise but realized that Puck was telling the truth as all of the Avengers were exchanging concerned and impressed looks. But still there was one little issue to address. "You said that you knew they were trying to grab you. How did you know that?"

"Because they were asking all these questions about me and my parents. Weirdly enough they were more interested in my mother but they wanted to know about both of them. Then they made touch this weird looking thing. They said it was some kind of test or something. They said it would either turn me to stone or show me who I'm meant to be."

"What did this weird thing look like?" Nick asked causing all but Natasha and Clint to jump. When the hell did he show up?! Also many more people could fit in this room anyway?

Puck's brow scrunched together as he tried to describe it. "It was black, shiny and smooth. It was also kind of flat on all sides but a little bent in the middle."

"The obelisk," Nick muttered with a frown. His brow furrowed even as his one eye roamed over Puck's body looking for… something. "And you touched this thing?"

"Yeah, I didn't really have a choice. They forced my hand on it and then it sort of glowed. I think it was a good thing. Also they didn't call it an obelisk. They called it something else. Something weird."

"What did they call it?"

Puck chewed on his lip in thought. "I think they called it... the diviner or something weird like that." He glanced up at Nick, whose face was blank. "Right, so anyway. They made me touch that and it glowed. So I think I passed their test I didn't want to take. I mean I'm not stone so I guess I passed. But then they started asking me even more questions. Except then they were asking about Sammy and Santana. They had these… folders. I think it was folders about all of us and our families."

"About Sam and Santana?" Bruce looked confused. "But why would they want those two? No offense but you two are… normal."

"Pretty much," Sam shrugged while Santana looked vaguely annoyed by the entire concept of normalcy. Blaine laughed quietly.

"I don't know but they definitely mentioned both Sam and San. That's when I started to realize that they couldn't be after Blaine. They hadn't mentioned him outside of that whole moment in the parking lot. And then they were taking blood samples and making me touch weird glowing things. They didn't even bother to make a ransom call. They were just concerned with poking me with needles and keeping me quiet."

Clint leaned forward in his seat with his lips pursed. "It makes sense. We all jumped the gun. We assumed that because Tony's secret was out about Blaine and Cooper that it was about Blaine. These guys, whoever they are, took advantage of that confusion to grab what they really wanted." He sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "And they got it. They got him, blood samples and all. And files on Santana and Sam."

"Well, actually, about that…." Puck murmured. A hint of a grin formed at the corners of his mouth. "I might have solved a part of that problem."

"The building was destroyed. It's hard to believe that anything survived that blaze," Natasha said, catching on. She tilted her head to the side. "Puck, did you set the building on fire?"

"Uh, I think I might have. But it was an accident!" Puck replied. "After I got there, they gave me something. It made me feel slow and gross but it didn't knock me out like I think they thought it would. So I managed to get loose. I had to fight off a few of the dudes guarding me. Some of them were freakishly strong but I managed to get through most of them. Score one for fight club. I gotta tell Mike later." Santana tapped him on the hand.

"Focus," she warned. His eyes widened somewhat as if just realizing he was going on a tangent. Santana smirked, shaking her head.

"Right, so yeah after I did that. I found out where they were keeping those samples and that weird thing."

"And then what?"

"I kind of accidentally blew up the lab they were using to store the stuff," Puck winced. "It was really an accident, I swear. I locked myself in the room to try to find a way to destroy the sample and the files. But the fridge was locked and I couldn't get it open. So I figured I would just destroy the stupid thing. Then I remembered when Blaine and Britt were talking about how to build a bomb and there was a lot of materials just lying around in there that could be used to make an explosive device. So I did that. It made a bigger boom than I thought it would originally."

"That explains the fire," Tony snorted. "But it doesn't explain how you didn't get caught in the boom. JARVIS initially reported no signs of life. That place was destroyed."

"Before I set the bomb off, I hid in one of the industrial fridges. Those things were built to survive like a like a nuclear holocaust. Once I thought it was safe, I climbed out and then you guys were there."

"Remind me to be very concerned with the fact that Britt and Blaine have been experimenting with bombs," Tony announced but the fond look on his face told Blaine that he was not going to be very concerned at all. His dad was definitely all sorts of awesome. "Back to Puck's Big Adventure, I get that they drugged you but why didn't they handcuff you? If they knew about you and Capsicle over here, then they had to have some idea that you could probably fight off the effects of the sedative."

"Oh, they did," Puck said, holding up one of his bandaged wrists. Blaine winced at the ugly red and purpling skin underneath the white gauze wrap. "Idiots handcuffed me in the front. Total amateurs. I picked the lock on the cuffs."

"Something else you learned from Clint?" Sam asked, slightly teasing.

"Nah, I learned that one from my gramps." Steve blushed but couldn't fight the proud smile that crossed his lips.

"So let me get this straight," Nick interrupted the family moment and crossed his arms over his chest. "You were kidnapped, drugged and handcuffed, and you somehow managed to not only see through the lies they were telling, but you also protected your friends and escaped on your own."

Puck looked pensive for a moment. "Yeah, I mean I guess that's how it happened."

"Well, I'll be damned. You really are your great grandparent's kid, aren't you?"

Puck looked down at his hands, letting them all see the blush that was creeping down his neck. Blaine smiled softly at the sight, feeling somewhat settled now. Puck was safe and sound. He hadn't gotten his best friend killed after all. True, judging by the look on Fury's face there was something bigger brewing but for right now everything was okay. And Blaine was just going to learn to live with those moments. Because something in his gut was telling him that these moments were going to be few and far between soon.  
____________________________________________________________________________________

Nick wanted to be relieved that the 084 was still in its holding case locked far, far away from Ohio but he couldn't. Not when it was becoming obvious that there was another one of these out there. After leaving the whole and healthy enough Puck and company behind, Nick retreated back to Headquarters, but only after checking to make sure that obelisk was where it was supposed to be. Now he was faced with the troubling fact that there was another one of these strange stones out there. Even more disturbing was these people seemed to know how and what it was for. And whatever it was for involved Puck. The kid wasn't even an agent yet and he was already in the middle of stuff. He was definitely going to have to keep an eye on him. And apparently Santana and Sam as well. Not that he hadn't already had his eye on them.

"Boss, I heard you went to see Puck. How was he?"

"Good," Nick answered as Phil took a seat opposite his desk. "How was your meeting with your new team?"

Phil raised an eyebrow. "Puck was kidnapped today, the school was nearly taken hostage and you really think I want to talk about meeting my new team?" Nick continued to stare. Phil sighed. "It went fine. Fitzsimmons babbled happily. Ward continues to be a smug black sheep. May is reluctant to return to the field but I have a feeling she'll cave soon enough. I left them working on a case of sorts. A man jumped out the window of a burning building downtown saving a woman in the process. He walked away and disappeared with a trace afterwards. So they're looking into it."

"Good work," Nick said, dismissively. He looked down at the file in front of him, hoping that Phil would take the hint. He did not. Figures. He really wanted someone to do a DNA test on his second in command and Clint. Because the kind of stubborn will that coursed through both men could only be genetic. "What now?"

"I talked to Clint. He told me that Puck thinks that this was about the super soldier formula. Except that doesn't make sense when you factor in Sam and Santana. And the obelisk."

Nick mentally cursed himself out. He should've known that the brat would pick up on that. Before he was allowed out in the field, Clint occupied his time reading everything he could get his hands on and that included old case files and everything he could find about the origins of SHIELD (even the beyond classified stuff that Nick was still at a loss for how he got his hands on it). For all that he gave Phil and Nick crap about their obsession with the super soldier project, Clint was just as bad when it came to anything about the origins of SHIELD. He devoured anything he could get his hands on. Nick never minded it either because in the beginning that was the only way they could get the kid to really open and talk to them. He was only engaged when he was talking about something he read. The Howling Commandoes were a big source of enjoyment for him. That might have been another reason he and Triplett got along so well. Trip loved talking about his grandfather and Clint loved hearing about him.

"If I asked you to let this go, would you?"

"Not when the life of someone Clint is invested in depends on it," Phil answered honestly. "You know he doesn't put himself out there like this. If I didn't like Puckerman because of who is, I would love him for the simple fact that Clint likes him."

Nick snorted in agreement. "I'm going to tell you a few things because I know you won't let this go. But I'm asking you to keep as far away from this as possible. Don't dig too deep because…. Just don't."

"What happens if I dig too deep?"

"Then I lose you. And Clint as well. I don't want to have to deal with either of that. So do me this one favor, take what I'm about to tell you and then leave it alone."

"Okay," Phil murmured, clearly in thought. "So what is this potentially life ending secret, anyway? I didn't read about the obelisk that much. That seemed like a you and Clint thing."

"In 1945, Agent Carter with the assistance of the Howling Commandoes, retrieved a dangerous artifact from HYDRA. The artifact could petrify anyone who touched it with their bare skin. Agent Carter deemed the object too dangerous for studying and ordered it locked away. And it was. No one wanted to touch the thing anyway. Or so we thought because…."

"Because now there is another one out there," Phil finished. "And Puck apparently touched it and he's fine. So either it's not the same thing or…."

"Or Puck is a whole lot more special than we thought before."

"None of this is new information. I already gathered most of this from talking to Clint. So what is it that you're trying to hide from me?"

Nick cursed the fact that the younger man was so damn insightful. Why did he surround himself with insightful, brilliant people that learned to read between the lines? Oh, right because that's what made them great agents. Still….

"Samuel Evans and Santana Lopez," Nick started. "It's true that I knew about Puckerman and Stark Jr from the very beginning. And yes, I've been waiting for them both to come of age. But I have also had my eye on those two as well."

"Why those two?"

"In April 1989, there was an incident out in the Hunan province. There was a massacre. SHIELD sent in a team of agents to investigate. Time passed and the team never responded. We sent in a backup team consisting of only two agents: Lumley and Avery. They confirmed that everyone in the village was dead. Except for a baby girl. They took the girl out of the arms of the lead agent on the mission. They thought she was dead too but she was just sleeping."

"What killed them?"

"People say it was monsters," Nick answered with a shrug. "Monsters ripped the village apart looking for something."

"What was that something?"

"Their daughter."

Phil sat up straight. "You're telling me that baby was a 084?"

"Yes, Agent Avery felt for her. She placed her in an orphanage. We set up a protocol that had her moved around. That didn't stop people from going after anyone associated with that mission. Agent Avery was murdered. The other agent, Lumley, he's being protected. We changed his name and moved him far away. He's safe so far. But he warned us to leave the baby alone. He said that death follows that baby. He may have had a point."

"That's unexpectedly dark story, boss. But what does that have to do with Sam Evans and Santana Lopez? They weren't even alive twenty three years ago."

"Before we placed her, I had the baby tested. I wanted to know what was so special about her that an entire village and some of my agents had to die. The tests came back negative. There was nothing special about her. She was an ordinary child… at first glance. Recently, I came across a particularly unique genetic code. It came from a source that I will not discuss with you at this time." Phil looked like he wanted to question it but finally nodded. "Remembering the samples we took from the baby, I went back and compared it to the code and there was a match. It wasn't perfect but the baby had DNA that matched the sample."

"The sample you won't talk about," Phil said, sounding all too much like Clint. Nick rolled his eye.

"Yes, that sample. I didn't trust that this would be an isolated incident. So I created a program that looked for anyone with that particular genetic code. Evans and Lopez were two that showed up. Puckerman showed up as well but I just brushed that off as the system picking up on his being related to Steve."

"But now you think differently?"

"Now I think differently. Now I know that that he has something to do with the obelisk. It would make my life easy if what he touched was a totally different thing but I have a feeling that it is not. And things just got a lot more complicated. Because the source I got the code from… it's complicated. But let's just say there's a lot more going in Puckerman than just super soldier blood. And that now includes the other two as well."

"So those three are the same?" Phil asked. Nick nodded. "That's interesting. From everything that Clint told me, it would appear that those three clicked first. Santana and Puck have been best friends since they were young. They added the others along the way but there appears to be a stronger connection between Sam, Puck and Santana. Clint thought it was because Santana dated them both at some point but now…."

Nick ran a hand over his face. Now he had three kids with alien DNA, two devices that turned everyone but one of those kids with alien DNA to stone and the increasingly bad feeling that he was far out of his depth with this one. He wanted nothing more than to run through this with Phil. The man was an amazing sounding board. But he couldn't do that. He could tell him the truth about the serum. The serum that was derived from the same genetic code that was in his two new recruits and Sam. The same serum that brought him back to life but at a price. Nick knew that he couldn't do that. He saw what happened to the other agents. The fact that Phil was still Phil was a miracle. He couldn't run the risk of him remembering the truth about Tahiti. Especially not now that Clint knew he was still alive. If the archer lost Phil again this soon after getting him back, even the combined forces of the Avengers and Natasha wouldn't be enough to pull him back from the edge. He sighed.

"Sometimes being in charge really sucks," Nick commented. Phil snorted. Nick raised an eyebrow. "I wouldn't laugh if I were you. Who do you think I've been grooming to take my place when I finally retire?"

"You? Retire? That's actually funny, boss." Phil leaned back in his seat. "But if you were to retire… how far away from retirement age would you say you are?" Nick smirked and closed his eye. "No, seriously, how old are you?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Yes, actually I would like to know. Hence the reason I asked."

"Let it go, Phil. Go tend to your team. Given that bunch of dysfunctional agents, I'm sure they've managed to screw something up by now."

"Or May killed them. Did I ever thank you for giving me this team by the way? Especially Ward."

"You're welcome," Nick grinned. His grin grew wider when Phil's phone went off. The normally emotionally restrained man let out a deep groan. "Problems with the kids?"

"So we found out this hacker named Skye has been in contact with our hero. We picked her up a few hours ago. But they lost her."

Nick couldn't help it. He laughed. "They lost a hacker?"

"Apparently. It's moments like this that make me really miss Natasha and Clint. You sure I can't have them back?"

"Positive. But if you're good I might give you Black Hawk 2.0 once they have completed training."

Phil shrugged, rising from his seat. "I can live with that. Time to go save the day."

"Good luck," Nick muttered, earning a dark glare from Phil as the man passed through the door. Yes, this team was going to be good for Coulson. He knew it was a risk, splitting up Phil and Clint but he needed to keep Phil as far away from anything dealing with the true nature of Tahiti as possible. Hopefully Nick would've figured out the connection between the newest recruits, Sam, the obelisk and the source it all came from before they joined his team. But at least for now, he wasn't going to have any time to ask any questions. He would be too busy wrangling his new team. Best decision he ever made.  
____________________________________________________________________________________

Blaine watched as Puck shifted in his sleep for the seemingly hundredth time. He winced a little with the motion but settled down after that. Still, that momentary expression of pain was enough to send Santana out of the room in search of someone who could give him some pain medication. Brittany and Sam were on a food run with Cooper and Darcy. The rest of the Avengers were scattered around the building, no doubt keeping an eye on all of them despite Puck ordering them to clear out a few hours ago. Clint's exact words were "you're not the boss of me" before dramatically leaping onto the back of a chair and into an air vent. Steve had to be dragged out by Tony and Bruce. Thor wandered away when he found out the nurses had unlimited coffee. And Natasha simply vanished. He hadn't seen hide nor red hair of the assassin since Clint disappeared but he knew she was still around. All of this meant that despite his best attempt to make sure that they weren't alone, Blaine was now alone in a room with the last person in the world he wanted to be alone with. He just hoped that Puck managed to stay asleep until Santana came back with his meds.

"So you going to tell me what's on your mind?"

Of course he wouldn't. Blaine looked up to meet Puck's exhausted gaze.

"If I tell you that I'm not thinking about anything would you believe me?"

"No," Puck whispered. He cleared his throat, shifting again. "Really though. What's wrong? I would've thought you'd be happy."

"Don't get me wrong. Of course I'm happy that you're okay. But I still can't help but think that this is my fault."

"How?" Puck asked, wrinkling his brow. "It had nothing to do with you. This was all about someone out to get me."

"I just feel like none of this would've happened if I never dragged any of you into my world. I just feel like I should've walked away from all you in the very beginning."

Puck sighed. "So basically you feel guilty for playing a part in the fact that I now have a family that gives a damn about me? You feel bad that I'm finally going to do something with my life that's meaningful? I finally feel like I am someone other than Aaron Puckerman's son who is destined to follow in his same non footsteps. You're seriously apologizing for that?"

Blaine ran a hand over his face before cracking a small smile. "You make it really hard to feel guilty, you know that?"

"You have nothing to feel guilty about. I would take all of this over what I had before. And that was nothing. I had nothing before you and the Avengers came into my life. I was going nowhere before that and now…" Puck smiled softly. "Now I feel like I am going somewhere. So stop it with the guilt trips and let me sleep."

"Right, sorry, bro. Get some sleep."

Puck gave him one last tired glare before closing his eyes once again. He was asleep a second before Santana returned with a nurse brandishing a syringe. Judging by the small smile on her face, Santana most likely heard everything. He knew she did when she sat down beside him and gave him a quick hug.

"Thank you," she said in answer to his silent confusion.

"Why?"

"Because you saved his life, whether you think you did or not."

Blaine fought the urge to scoff. "I'm pretty sure he saved his own life."

"Not today, kid genius. I just meant in general. He's right. I don't know what he was going to do with his life. You helped him to graduate. You helped lead him to a family that does care about him. You have helped him more than you think Blaine Warbler. You have given him something more to focus on that his shitty life. Now I'm sure he'll have a better answer when he's asked where he'll be in ten years. So stop feeling guilty for stuff you had no control over. I'm pretty sure that we're going to have to deal with enough crap in the next weeks. So let's just enjoy this moment, okay?"

Blaine settled back in his seat, never tearing his eyes away from the more peaceful sleeping figure on the bed. There would be no more restless pained shifting tonight. He was settled and looking comfortable. He was alive and here. Santana was right. This was just the start of it all. Things were about to get serious. The least he could do was shut up, stop guilt tripping about stupid stuff and enjoy the moment. He leaned his head against Santana's and grinned.

"You're right."

Santana scoffed. "Duh, Hogwarts. I'm always right. I'm totally psychic or something."

"You're something."

"Damn straight….. Wait, what?!"


	9. Up in the Air

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Clint does his job with a lot of resistance, Puck pines and the seniors finally graduate. Also what the hell is Brittany?

Clint crouched closer to the ground, keeping his sharp gaze focused on the excavation efforts going on in the remains of the science lab where Puck was being held. He watched as his fellow agents scoured the site trying to find a clue as to who did this but were coming up empty. Either the fire was so hot that it scorched even the bones of those left behind or they got away. Clint was willing to bet it was that was definitely the last one. He frowned. Fury wasn't going to like this. He snapped his head to the side as one of the agents yelled to the others announcing that they found something. And from the looks of it, they found Puck's 'weird looking thing'.

He slid down the hill he was standing on, coming to a stop in front of the agents who were now standing in front of the stone. He ignored the scoffs and nonverbal cold shoulders he was getting and kneeled in front of it. He never got a chance to see the real thing. Fury wouldn't let him, that overprotective bastard, but he had studied the file on the obelisk. If this wasn't the same stone from the 40s then this was a definite a carbon copy. He rolled his eyes as one of the agents started to reach for it with his bare hand.

"Dude, didn't Fury brief you? Touching that thing is bad, okay? Don't do it."

"This coming from the traitor," the man retorted. "What are you even doing here?"

"Obviously running point on orders from Fury, Jones," Clint retorted. "He thought you guys needed assistance and I was in the area. Also I was here when the place collapsed. He figured I could help."

"The only thing you do is destroy," Jones hissed. "I lost a lot of friends when the hellicarrier was damaged. Friends that died from arrow wounds. You have feelings about that, Barton? Any insight?"

Clint's jaw twitched. He exhaled slowly before returning Jones' intense stare. "You will never, can never, imagine how horrible I feel about that. What happened that day me every minute of every day. But that is neither here nor there. Right now, we have to find a way to get this back to Fury without anyone turning to stone."

"I read the statement that Puckerman kid gave. He didn't turn to stone, so it's probably not the real thing," one of the other agents chimed in. His idiot friends backed him up. Clint sighed. He knew this was going to happen.

"It might not be the real thing but do you really want to take a chance? I know I'm not willing to risk it with that thing. I've read what it can do. It doesn't temporarily turn people into stone. It's a permanent, you're really dead type stone."

Jones scoffed. "How do we even know we can just trust this kid? He probably just ran away or something. You know how kids are."

"I don't actually. Not really sure you do either. But I do know this kid. This kid is not a liar. He's not going to make something like this up. He doesn't know what this can do. So if he said that this thing has a chance of turning someone into stone, I'm inclined to believe him."

"Yeah, well," Jones grinned, leaning towards the stone. "I'm not."

"Don't be an asshole, Jones. I know it's a struggle for you but just try," Clint snapped. He would look back on this moment and kick his own ass (if Natasha didn't first). He should've been paying attention. He should've known that they weren't going to take his presence lightly. But he still didn't expect the sharp, sudden jab to the face. It was only because of his circus born reflexes that he was able to move enough that a direct shot to his face only became a glancing blow across his temple. Still hurt thought. He was prepared for the second blow even though his ears were ringing. He threw up an arm to block the blow aimed for his stomach. It left him open to a punch from the back. He knew they weren't going to be happy to see him… but no, Fury was insistent that he supervise the agents' efforts at retrieving the potential second obelisk.

He grunted as he slammed into the ground. Two of the agents stood on each of his arms pinning him to the ground while one rested a heavy booted foot on his stomach. He grunted as the agent applied a slight bit of pressure, stealing his breath away. He glared up at Jones who was towering over him.

"The great Hawkeye," Jones spat on the ground, dangerously close to Clint's head. "The youngest agent in SHIELD history. One of the few agents with level 10 clearance aside from the Black Widow. We hear so much about you but you're kind of disappointing in person, Barton. Especially when you're giving it up to the first person that could make you turn. The blood of all those SHIELD agents is on your hands. The blood of Phil Coulson is on your hands."

He knew Phil wasn't dead but the words still hurt worse than any of the physical blows they laid on him. The blood of every single one of the forty four agents he had a hand in murdering, Phil included, was on his hands. Jones wasn't saying anything that he didn't already think. They were right. He turned against SHIELD. He killed people. He turned against the place that was his home since he was 17 years old. He was a traitor and he deserved this. He deserved their hatred and their attempts at retribution.

"We should give him a taste of his own medicine," the sole female agent murmured. She eyed the stone that lay forgotten in the midst of their fight. "You're scared of this, aren't you?"

"Leave it alone, Garza! Don't touch that."

She arched an eyebrow. "I never saw the appeal in you, Barton. I never understood why they kept you. You're good with a bow and arrow but that's about it. There's nothing special about you. And now we know that it doesn't take much to turn you against the agency.

Director Fury should've bounced you out on your ass. Instead you get to shack up with Tony Stark and the rest of the Avengers, like you're some kind of hero. Like this wasn't all your fault. Like you deserve some kind of reward."

"Fine, it's my fault, okay? Is that what you want to hear? I did this. I screwed everything up. But I'm telling you to leave that alone, Garza. Just find a way to get back to Fury without touching it."

Garza smirked. "Touch it? You mean like this?"

Before he could even let out so much as a warning, the woman had swooped in and grabbed the stone with her bare hand. Clint flinched but then found himself blinking as she stood in front of him, completely unharmed. The others were too busy laughing at what they believed was Clint's cowardice to notice the glowing writing on the stone. It was the same thing. Oh, shit, it was the same stone. There were two of them.

"This is what you're so afraid of, Barton?" Garza laughed. "Seriously? It's a fake. That kid lied. There's nothing to be scared of. You want to touch?"

"Garza, I'm so serious right now, put that thing away. You have no idea what you're messing with." And I have no idea what you are. "Just put it away."

"Hey, Jones? I wonder what would happen if our resident traitor touched it? Maybe it senses something in people. Maybe it will pick up on him being a murderous coward."

Jones nodded thoughtfully. "You might be on to something, Sarah. Let's test it out."

Clint's eyes widened as Garza moved towards him with the stone. He knew what it was capable of. He saw the effects in Agent Carter's files. He didn't know how the stone picked who did and didn't get turned to stone but he did know that he didn't want to find out if he was immune or not. Garza moved slowly with a wide, malicious smirk on her face. He wanted nothing more than to punch that look off her face. But he couldn't with his arms pinned down. Too bad the idiots forgot about his legs. He kicked out with his left leg catching her on the knee. She stumbled, unprepared for the sudden movement. The stone went flying out of her hands. Jones threw his hands up to catch it. Idiot.

They all watched as he the obelisk landed on the palm of his hand. The others let out chuckles when Jones grinned with the stone in hand. Their laughs shifted abruptly into yells of horror as the stone started to ascend rapidly up his arm. Clint closed his eyes as Jones started to scream trying in vain to shake off the rocky growth. He read the files on the obelisk. That wasn't happening. There was no escape. It was a slow, horrifying death and one he didn't wish on anyone. Not even Jones. But maybe Loki.

"Jones?" Garza questioned quietly. Clint cracked his eyes open slightly to find that she was now standing in front of the stone covered man. Her hands fluttered over the statue formerly known as Agent Jones as if she was were afraid to touch. He didn't think she should be. She was clearly immune. But it's not like anyone was listening to him anyway. "Eric!"

"He's dead," the idiot holding his arms down muttered. "He's dead! This is crazy! How can that…." Clint sighed internally as the remainder of the five man team all turned their attention to him. He really should've crawled away when he had the chance. "This is your fault!"

"Yeah, the guy who told you not to touch the damn thing is clearly responsible for this," Clint couldn't help but retort even as he started to push himself off the ground. His current position left him feeling weak and vulnerable. He hated that feeling, especially without Natasha around to have his back. "How the hell did you geniuses even get through basic training?"

"I'll show you a genius," Garza hissed, kicking him in the ribs. Clint grunted but wouldn't give them satisfaction of yelling. He barely managed to keep in the sound but he couldn't help but fall to his knees again. "This is for everyone in New York. This is for Jones! And Phil Coulson."

Clint hissed as they all abandoned any pretenses of civility or honor amongst agents and continued their vicious assault. He curled the best he could to protect his ribs but the blows just kept landing. He grunted as he felt something snap in his chest. He closed his eyes, and for the time in forever, he prayed for anything that could make this stop. And then he smelled strawberries, chocolate and cinnamon. The scent was at once familiar and soothing. It was exactly the answer to his prayers that he hoped for. And she wasn't alone. There was a newer scent but the bizarre combination of maple syrup and chemicals was just as comforting to him as the first one. They both meant safety.

"I would stop if I were you," Natasha warned. Her voice was calm and steady but he knew her. He knew her better than he knew himself and he knew that she was pissed. "But if for some you don't, my friend over here is going to get angry. And believe me, you're not going to like him when he's angry."

"Of course you're taking sides with the traitor," Garza seethed, ignoring the imminent green threat behind Natasha. Idiots. All of them, just idiots. "You're protecting your precious boyfriend. Oh, yeah we know all about you two. That's the reason he spared you. So he could sleep with you. Neither of you have ever been about SHIELD. You've always only looked out for yourselves. You don't deserve to call yourself agents. You don't deserve to live. It should be you that died on that hellicarrier!"

Natasha laughed even as a too common rumble sounded from directly behind her. "I bet in five minutes, you're really going to wish that you hadn't said that." He could almost hear the smug smirk in her voice. "You see you might think we're not worth that much but there is someone who feels quite the opposite. He's actually quite fond of his little Cupid."

"Oh, shit, it's the Hulk!"

Clint lifted his head to see that the eight foot tall rage monster himself was towering over the agents with a murderous look in his gamma green eyes. There was not a hint of Bruce to be found. This was totally the Other Guy's show. And to think it was all for Clint. He was flattered. Really. But also his chest hurt. He pressed one hand against his mouth and the other over his sore ribs as a full body cough wracked his bruised frame. He pulled his hand away, absently lowering it to his side when he suddenly found his hand in the firm grip of Natasha. She was staring at his palm with a mix of apprehension and rage on her features. He started to ask what she was doing when she turned his hand towards him. His brow furrowed as he saw what was causing that curious mix of emotions. The splotches of bright red stood out very clearly against the smooth, lined skin of his palm.

"Well, that's not good," he murmured. He could feel more than see Natasha glaring at him. He gave her a smile which she ignored. Rude.

"Here's what's going to happen," Natasha announced, whirling around to face the terrified agents. "You complete waste of flesh agents are going to pack this area up. You're going to get that thing contained without anyone else turning into stone. Then we're going to get my partner to the hospital. If anyone has a problem with this plan, I will shoot you in the kneecap and leave you in a locked room with the Hulk and Thor. Any questions?"

"No!"

Clint grunted as he flopped back on his side. Natasha kneeled beside him, brushing a hand over his face and wincing as she surveyed the damage. He offered her a weak smile around his busted lip. The effort wasn't wasted this time as she smiled back at him just as softly.

"Hey, partner," he murmured.

"Hey, partner."

"What are you doing here?"

"It was your turn for dinner tonight. The natives were getting restless so I forced Fury to tell me where you were. Heaven forbid they order takeout for just one night. I swear they're all spoiled when it comes to your cooking."

"So that's the reason why you just threatened to shoot our fellow agents and Bruce is Hulking out?" he asked, moaning as the urge to laugh jostled his ribs.

"Okay, so maybe they're not the only spoiled ones," she replied with a teasing smile. "But I think they're going to have to get over it. You're looking at a definite overnight stay. Wouldn't you say, Doctor?"

"That's being very optimistic," a now human sized Bruce commented as he joined the pair. He scanned Clint's prone body while idly clinching the pants that he clearly just stole together with one hand. It was bizarre how easily Clint adjusted to this weird new life of his. But wait…

"Bruce, no! I can't stay more than one night. I refuse to stay longer than Puck does!"

"Puck wasn't very nearly beaten to death by bratty and incompetent agents. Not to mention that super soldier blood of his comes in real handy for healing. So he gets to leave in a day. We'll see what the doctors say about you when we get there."

"But Bruce…" Clint trailed off as Bruce's normally brown eyes flashed green. He knew what that meant.

"Cupid stay in hospital," Bruce, or rather the Other Guy, growled.

Clint rolled his eyes. It was just his luck. His whole life he went practically ignored and constantly overlooked. Then he got Nick and Phil who saw through every single lie or stretch of the truth. Then came Natasha. And now he was on a team with the biggest bunch of mother hens he ever had the horror of meeting. That was literally in the case of the Hulk and Thor wasn't exactly some ninety pound weakling either. But as annoying as it was to constantly have five self-appointed brothers (not to mention the kids who picked up the slack in the absence of the others) constantly concerned about his wellbeing, Clint had to admit that it made him feel good. He felt cared about and that would never be a bad thing. He knew they cared. Even if they were smothering the life out of him in the process.

"Whatever. As long as I'm out by the time the kids graduate," he whined petulantly.

"That's like in another week or so. Pretty sure you'll be fine," Natasha countered, raising an eyebrow at his antics. She glanced up at Bruce. "You think he can walk?"

"Very slowly," Bruce nodded. Clint started to make a nasty comment about how he was capable of making his own mobility judgments but for starters, he didn't like the look in Bruce's eyes. Then there was the pesky fact that he wasn't entirely sure he could walk. So instead he shut up and let Natasha and Bruce guide him to his feet. He closed his eyes as the whole world appeared to lurch and swirl around them. "Clint, you with us?"

Clint stared at the three men wearing Bruce's face standing in front of him. Since when could Bruce do that? He wondered if he could make three Hulks too. And then he saw that there were three Natasha's as well. That wasn't right. He knew everything about Natasha. She couldn't split herself in three. So that must mean…. Oh, well damn.

"I think I'm about to…."

He trailed off as his whole world went black. Before he gave into the welcoming darkness, he swore he heard Bruce and Natasha both laughing at him. They were never getting cake again.  
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Rachel leaned against the doorway of the hospital room quietly watching the sole occupant as he moved around slowly gathering his few belongings into a duffel bag. The motions were stiff and lacking his usual fluidness and she knew that he was still hurting even after being there for three days. She could make out of the still healing burns on his neck and arms. But despite that he was here and he was breathing. That was enough. Because the last time she saw him, he was unconscious and being shoved into the back of a van. She would take anything over that. She really thought she was never going to see him again. She was never so happy to be wrong before.

"You coming in or are you just gonna stand there and keep watching, creeper?"

Her lips ticked up at the corners of her mouth at the hint of a smile in his voice. It was rougher than normal but she found she liked the huskiness of it. She was so busy contemplating the timbre of his voice that she didn't realize he was still waiting for an answer.

"Rachel?" he asked as he turned around. That's when she saw the extent of the damage on his face. She gasped taking a slow and unintended step towards him. He met her the rest of the way. There were bruises and a stitched up wound on his forehead. Her hand drifted up towards his faces, gently assessing the damage through touch. Her fingertips brushed lightly against the darkest of the bruising along his cheek. Despite her gentle touch, Puck still flinched prompting her to pull her hand back entirely. He grabbed her hand before she could lower it and held it against his cheek. "Rach, I swear it's not as a bad as it looks."

"Well, that's good because it looks terrible," Rachel cried.

"Yeah, well you should see the other guy," he joked, shrugging slightly.

"Noah, this isn't funny," she shook her head. "This is what this law enforcement agency thing you're doing is going to be like, isn't it? You haven't even started yet and you're already hurt. Why are you going to do this to yourself?"

"Because I have to," he answered, smiling softly.

"If it's about being in New York, then just move in with me and Kurt. It'll be safe and you can still see Santana and the others. And I don't have to lose you or see you hurt like this again."

Puck shook his head. "I couldn't even if I wanted to. Those guys weren't after Blaine. They were after me. If they managed to get me here, they can get me anywhere if I'm on my own. I need to protect myself. And I can't do that alone. I need SHIELD."

"I don't understand any of that," she admitted with tears welling in her eyes. "All I know is that I cannot lose you, Noah Puckerman."

He opened his mouth to say something but the words were cut off by the person walking through the door. She recognized him as Captain America… Steve Rogers. He was every bit as handsome as the history books made him sound. His blue eyes were wide but understanding as they darted between Rachel and Puck who were still holding hands in the center of the room.

"Uh, I can come back," Steve murmured, the corners of his mouth twitching ever so slightly. Puck laughed softly and letting go of Rachel's hands. She missed his touch almost as soon as it was gone. She noticed that Steve was still watching them with that understanding look in his eyes. "You sure? I could always go visit Clint again. He's pretty desperate for any sign of outside life since Bruce has him practically strapped to the bed."

"Nah, it's cool," Puck laughed again. "Rachel, you remember Steve, right?"

"Who could forget Captain America?" Rachel retorted. She wasn't into comic books or anything like that but this was Captain America! Her father was a huge fan and he may have passed that on to her. So there was no way she was going to forget meeting him. Leroy hadn't shut up about amazing it was that Puck even remotely knew the man.

He smiled brighter as if remembering her father's fondness for Captain America. "Well, the thing is that he's also my great grandfather."

Rachel's eyes widened as she started to protest the entire concept but her mouth slammed shut in the next breath. There were just enough similar facial features between them that they could see the resemblance now. It wasn't just looks either. There was something about the way they both carried themselves. Not to mention, she recognized the same half smile/half smirk that Puck used when he knew something that someone else didn't on Steve.

"Whoa," she finally murmured.

"Yeah, kinda blew my mind too. But that's him. My grampus."

"Still vetoing that one."

"Dammit!" Puck hissed, pulling a larger grin from Steve. Puck rolled his eyes and Rachel couldn't help but smile at the obvious affection between the two. "Anyway, he worked with the people who founded SHIELD. A large part of why they continued the work was to find him. One of those founders was my great grandmother. So you see SHIELD is in my blood. I have to do this, Rachel. I have to join SHIELD and continue the work that my great grandparents started and use the gifts I've been given to do something good for the world. And maybe keep my ass somewhat out of trouble in the process. I mean I'm going to end up in the mix of things. Santana is most likely going to be my partner. This will only end in destruction. But yeah, hopefully destruction of other things and people."

Rachel stared at him silently. She always knew that Puck had a capacity for kindness. Despite his grumbling and complaining, he stuck with the glee club, helping them out whenever he could. He was never embarrassed about being a part of the lowest social group in the school. He proudly called Artie his friend and was often spotted wheeling him around in the hallways. He had a big heart. He also had a presence that attracted people. She knew that she, along with the majority of the female glee club members, felt it. So really she knew that there was a lot more to Noah Puckerman than meet the eye but now it was like a switch had been flipped inside of him. Now he wasn't hiding behind a mask. Now he was the person she always saw behind the Puck persona. She didn't know when this happened but she knew that she liked it. And it killed her that she blew her chances with him.

She was so caught in that train of thought that she failed to notice him lifting his bag from the bed. She didn't miss Steve's look annoyance as he pried the bag from his great grandson's hands and onto his own shoulder. Puck rolled his eyes in response before focusing on Rachel. He smiled wistfully at her before pulling her into a hug.

"You're not losing me, Rach. But I need to do this. Be happy. You're going to own Broadway with Kurt and Finn by your side. That is everything you've always wanted and you got it, babe," he whispered into her ear. He pulled away, pressing a kiss on her forehead. "I'll see you at graduation."

With that said, he was walking out the door as fast as he could without full on running. She heard a nurse reminding him that it was hospital policy to ride out in a wheelchair. She wanted to smile but her lips wouldn't work. She really screwed this up. When she imagined her perfect future, she thought it was Finn that she wanted beside her. But really it was the one that was almost always by her side in some capacity. Except now. Now he had a new family and people that wouldn't drop him for Finn. She really screwed up.

"Rachel?" she jumped, not realizing that Steve was still in the room. She frowned at the piece of paper he was handing her. "That's the number for JARVIS, essentially he's Tony's robot butler at Stark Tower. Noah won't be living there most of the time but the easiest way to get a message until he finishes training will be to call that number."

"He lets you call him Noah. Even his mother has to call him Puck."

"He told me that his family calls him Noah," he said with a soft smile. "Just between you and I, I really don't think even Santana can get away with the number of times you call him Noah. And I don't really know anything she could do to him that he wouldn't let slide. Promise me, you'll think about that."

"I will," she whispered.

"It was nice seeing you again, Rachel. I look forward to seeing you at graduation."

"Me too," Rachel replied giving him a brighter smile. She clutched the piece of paper in her hands. Maybe they weren't a lost cause after all.  
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Steve never really gave much thought to the idea of having children. In the beginning, it was because he was so weak and sickly. He knew that he wasn't exactly a chick magnent back in the day. Then once he became Captain America, he was more focused on using his gifts to actually make a difference. He hadn't even thought about the idea of falling in love and getting married until Peggy came along. For a brief moment before everything went to hell in a hand basket, he considered it. He thought that they could get married after the war and raise a family with Bucky and the rest of the Howling Commandos as beloved uncles. It was a fantasy that was shattered when he watched Bucky fall from the train. He knew then that the white picket fence dream was just that... a dream. He couldn't imagine a future without Bucky in his life. Even with Peggy there. He just couldn't see it happening. But one night... one act of physical comfort the night Bucky fell gave him something he had written off as impossible. It gave him back the future he thought was lost when he lost Bucky. It gave him a daughter who he never got to know but she had a son, who despite being a waste of a human being, gave the world (and Steve) this imposisbly frustrating, amazing teenager.

God he wished Bucky was around to see this. He would love Puck. Steve just knew it. They were similar. Both were always looking out for everyone but themselves. They were both willing to sacrfice everything so that the people they loved could be happy, even if it meant they were miserable. Steve pushed the thoughts of his best friend from his mind. One day he would worry about why he felt Bucky's absence more acutely than Peggy's. But for now he had an upset great grandson to track down. To say that he just got out of the hospital, the kid made excellent progress on running away from his problems, i.e. Rachel Berry.

He finally caught up to Puck in the parking lot, just outside the hospital doors. He watched as his kid paced to and fro, raking a hand through his hair as he passed. The frustration coming off of him was almost visible. Steve didn't say anything to him. He simply moved towards the pacing teen and stood against the side of the building. He placed the bag on his right side and waited. He didn't wait long. His lips curved as all six feet of sulking teenager slumped against the wall beside him.

"What was that about? I thought you liked Rachel."

Puck sighed. "I do. I really do. Next to Darcy, Santana, Britt and Beth, she's the most important woman in my life. So yeah, I like her. I love her even."

Steve's brow furrowed. "I'm confused then. What's the problem?"

"You know why you and Nana Peggy worked so well together? It's because you were on the same page from the very first day. There was never confusion between you two. You knew you liked her from the very first day you met. And from how Nana Peggy talked about you, I would say it was pretty much the same. But me? I barely know where I stand with Rachel on a good day. Some days, I'm her everything and then the next…."

"What do you want to be with her?"

"What I want doesn't matter. It's never going to work anyway. She's Broadway musicals and fashion and Kurt and Finn. And I'm destined for spy games, super soldiers and SHIELD. There is no room for me in her life and there definitely isn't room for her in mine."

"Why not? Why can't you find a way to fit her into your life? Clearly it's possible to have significant others outside of SHIELD. Tony has Pepper, not mention Blaine and Cooper. You are allowed to have a life outside of SHIELD. No, I actually need you to have a life outside of SHIELD. You cannot let yourself only become about that one part of your life. You will lose yourself and never be able to come back. I've seen that happen to other people and I can't let it happen to you."

Puck ran a hand over his face. "I don't know."

"I do. Trust me, Noah. Life is short," Steve paused. "Okay, maybe not so much for me… or possibly you but in our line of work there are no guarantees. There is a high degree of risk, even for super soldiers. You need to enjoy the life you have now. That means that you can't be scared to go after what or who you want."

"Even if I were to make a move, which I'm not saying that I will but even if was to think about making a move on Rachel, there is another not insignificant problem," Puck mumbled. Steve arched an eyebrow. "She's also very much engaged to Finn Hudson."

"Finn is the tall kid that for some reason gets all the solos, right?"

"That's him. Finnocence."

Steve scoffed, slinging an arm around Puck's shoulders, careful of the still healing burns on his arms. "You have nothing to worry about there. You're definitely more attractive than that guy. You're quite the catch, kid."

Puck snorted, clearly trying to hold back the laughter but he finally gave in. Steve watched with pride in his eyes as Puck doubled over, wracked with full body laughs. He was happy that he was able to provoke that reaction in the teen. He wasn't lying when he said that he wanted Puck to have a life outside of SHIELD. He didn't want him to make the same mistakes he did. He didn't want him to let life slip past him and then wake up seventy years later to nothing. He got lucky when Puck waltzed into his life. But he didn't want to risk it for Puck. He placed a gentle hand on the back of the kid's neck and squeezed lightly. Puck stood up and gave him an amused yet affectionate look. Steve grinned wider.

"You know I think that prolonged exposure to Uncle Tony and Clint is definitely having a negative effect on you. It's making you kind of sarcastic."

"That is the only way to communicate with them about 80% of the day," Steve pointed out. Puck tilted his head in acceptance. "Now come on, I promised Bruce I'd get you home and rested before the others inevitably dragged you back here to visit with Clint."

"Is he still sending SOS messages to the others to break him out?"

"That and begging me to give him some of my blood," Steve grumbled. "He said something about it working for vampires. I'm not even going to pretend to understand what that's supposed to mean."

"It means that I need to catch you up on so much, Grandpa," Puck said before narrowing his eyes and staring at Steve as if waiting for something.

"What?"

"No veto?"

Steve pretended to mull it over before shaking his head. "I think I like Grandpa."

Puck gave him a shy smile before covering it up with his usual bravado. "Let's see, we have about seventy years of pop culture to go over. So much to do and….."

"The rest of our lives to do it," Steve reminded him. Clearly the formula was the reason he survived his time on ice. He didn't know how long the formula would keep him young and healthy but he had a feeling it was better than the average human. He also had a feeling that Puck was going to be around for a while too. They had plenty of time to catch up on Pop Culture. And he intended on enjoying every minute of it. Even if it involved something called Twilight which Puck claimed to hate but explained was vital to his understanding of vampire lore. Something told Steve he was going to regret this one but the spark of life in Puck's eyes was enough to keep him silent. Who knows? It might not even be that bad.

Correction, he was wrong. It was that bad. Twilight was now officially banned in the Tower. He might not know a lot about vampires but he knew they weren't supposed to sparkle!  
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Puck took a deep breath as he lined up along with the rest of the graduating class. He really didn't think he would be here. He thought for sure that he would be stuck in Lima at least another year, probably the rest of his life. But now he was graduating. He had a career. And most importantly he had family and friends to celebrate with. He smiled as Brittany tugged on the hand linked through his, pulling him forward in their procession march. He knew why she was so excited. Truthfully, he was a little giddy too. He took his seat next Brittany who yet to let go of his hand. They were sitting right behind Santana. His best friend glanced over her shoulder to wink at him. He smirked back. This was going to be fun.

The trio watched in anticipation as the first few rows were called, including one Rachel Berry. She didn't even glance at the audience as she moved behind the others to receive her diploma. Puck knew how much her family's lack of support hurt her. She had her fathers, yes. But it was just the three of them. He knew all too well how much it hurt to know that your family wouldn't be there to support you. But he also was learning that sometimes the family you were born into wasn't the family you needed.

Puck bit on his lip to hold in the laugh that threatened to escape when Rachel stepped forward to shake Figgins' hand and get her diploma. He knew she was expecting to hear her fathers cheering for her. Maybe Finn and the rest of the Hudson-Hummel clan would clap. But Puck knew Rachel was counting on her fathers. She definitely wasn't expecting the collective yells and applause from the combined family sections of Berry, Lopez, Pierce and Puckerman. The result was a ridiculously loud mess but Puck knew that Rachel would understand the meaning underneath the cacophony of sound. Her eyes widened as she looked at the combined sections. He could see the tears welling in her eyes. Somehow she met his gaze through the crowd and gave him a bright, tear filled smile. He smiled back and nodded. She giggled and nodded in return before mouthing 'Thank you.' That woman was going to be the death of him.

An hour (and more embarrassing antics from their section) later, Puck was sitting in Breadstix with Rachel seated to his left and Santana pressed firmly against his right side with her head resting on his shoulder. The three of them were listening as Leroy asked Steve a thousand questions about being Captain America. What made it all the more amusing was that Steve didn't mind because he had just as many questions about Puck growing up. Steve was a little apprehensive about meeting yet another Captain America fan boy at first. But when Puck mentioned that growing up, Leroy and Hiram were the closest thing he had to a father, he abruptly changed his tune. Then he was just as much a fan boy as Leroy was for him. And so the pair were seated close together exchanging tales of both the war and Puck's childhood (which felt like a war).

In a true Tony Stark move, the billionaire bought the restaurant and had half of it closed off for a private graduation party. This just meant that half of the place was filled with regular customers and the other was all them. It was an amusing contrast and one that Puck never imagined he would be on the right side of. But he was and it felt good. He glanced up to see that Happy was taking his role as unofficial doorman very seriously. No one was allowed in unless they were either preapproved of given the okay by one of the graduates.

It was funny how much money changed things. Half of the people currently trying to get through Happy were people who wouldn't be caught dead talking to any of them in the hallways unless it was to insult them. And now suddenly they wanted to be best friends. He grinned as Rick the Stick's continued efforts to attempt to get into the so-called VIP section of the Breadstix were met with increasingly more hilarious failures.

"Did you ever think we would be here?" he murmured to Santana. She glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

"We're at Breadstix every week."

"You know what I mean."

Santana laughed. "Yeah, I do. And no, I guess I never really gave it much thought. But I'm glad we are here. Together."

"Together," Puck agreed.

Rachel giggled drawing the table's attention suddenly. "As if there was ever any doubt you two were going to end up doing something together. You've been attached at the hip since that day back in the fifth grade."

"Oh, I remember that one," Leroy chuckled. "Hiram and I have always been listed as Noah's emergency contact and they called us to come pick him up because he got in a fight. This was around the time his father skipped out of town… again. So the fighting was an everyday thing. But this time we found out he was fighting a girl."

Puck lowered his head hoping that no one would see the flush growing across his face. Of course Santana did. She elbowed him in the ribs.

"Don't be like that. It was a cute story."

"You pushed me off the jungle gym!" he protested. "And then you kicked dirt in my face."

"And then Rachel smacked me with her Little Mermaid lunch box for picking on you! And the was the only reason you hit me back was because I pushed her down too!" Santana finished. Rachel made a strangled noise of laughter. Puck couldn't help but laugh too. He remembered that day clearly. Rachel was even smaller back then but she stood in front of him with her hands on her hips and eyes blazing. It was the start of a rather unorthodox friendship between the three of them that last for a few years. Then puberty hit and hormones… Finn.

But none of that mattered at the moment because for right now at least, he had them both back in his life. And nothing was going to ruin that.

"Rachel!"

Nothing except for Finn per the usual.

"Excuse me, this is a private event. No one gets in without permission," Happy said, pushing Finn back. Puck's former best friend looked confused. "Your name is not on the list."

"But those are my friends!" Finn protested pointing at the staring Puck, Rachel and Santana. Rachel shrugged lightly and turned away from the scene. His face fell. "Rachel?!"

Puck started to turn around, intent on ignoring the other teen when something caught his attention. He had no loyalty or allegiance to Finn Hudson. Not anymore. There was too much bad blood between them and Puck knew that even if he were to try to patch it up, their friendship would go back to the same uneven way it was before. So no, he had no intentions of giving to Finn Hudson. Carole Hudson-Hummel, on the other hand, was a different story. Because he did feel loyalty to that woman. If Leroy and Hiram were like his fathers, than Carole was like his mother. He groaned, hating what he was about to do but knowing that he really didn't have a choice. He signaled to Happy to let them in.

"Really?" Santana whined.

"It's Carole," Puck explained, sighing. "Trust me, I don't want Hudson over here anymore than you do. But it's Carole."

Santana didn't reply and he didn't expect her to. He wasn't the only one that Carole Hudson helped out growing up.

"Hello, Carole," Leroy said as they were all standing up to greet the approaching woman and her petulant son. Puck only had a moment to notice that Kurt and Burt weren't there before he was wrapped in a quick, yet loving, embrace from one of the first adults to show him even an ounce of kindness as a child. It meant a lot that she still clearly held affection for him after everything that happened between him and her son.

"Puck!" Carole said, smiling brightly. "I always knew you could do it, young man. I am so proud of you!"

"Thank you," he mumbled, scratching the back of his ear. "For everything."

"Of course, sweetheart," Carole nodded. "We're not staying long. Burt and Kurt are waiting for us in the car. I just wanted to give you these." She held out three envelopes for him, Santana and Brittany. "Rachel, I'll give you yours tomorrow when we see you for dinner."

"Of course, Mrs. Hummel," Rachel replied warmly, pointedly ignoring Finn. Puck really didn't want to give that too much thought. Thought led to ideas and he could not afford to have any ideas when it came to Rachel Berry.

True to her word, Carole and Finn didn't stay much longer. He introduced Steve to Carole, enjoying the amusing mixture of emotions that crossed both of their faces as they realized that Puck was related to Captain America. Carole pulled a promise from Puck that he would make time to see her before they left town. Like he could ever deny her that one simple request. Even if that meant spending time with Finn and Kurt. Now that was going to be awkward…

"Oh my, Puck look!"

He glanced over at Santana who had opened her envelope. There was the expected card congratulating them on graduating but inside the card was a picture. Puck's lips curved into a smile as he recognized the picture. He remembered that day very clearly too. It was the first day he truly met Brittany. They had some classes together but it wasn't until the day that Santana received news that she was officially a junior Cheerio that Brittany entered their social group. He was taken with the blonde right away.

The picture was only of the three of them. He remembered Finn being the one to take the picture. That explained why his mother was still holding on to the picture. Puck opened his own envelope and let his fingers trace over the three young, innocent faces. They were completely ignorant of how high school was going to change everything. It was only four years but they looked different than they did back then. Santana's face was leaner and he had put on more muscle. The younger versions of them still had some baby fat and an innocence that was quickly lost. But Brittany…she looked exactly the same. The same bright blue eyes. The same knowing smile. Hmmm. Speaking of Brittany…..

"She's with Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum," Santana answered his unasked question. "They saw Finn and split upstairs to the roof." Puck snorted.

"Figures. Let's go get our other halves."  
_____________________________________________  
Blaine closed his eyes, enjoying the cool night air. He knew it was kind of cowardly to run out when Puck let Carole and Finn in but he was just not prepared to deal with drama tonight. So he escaped with Sam and Brittany in tow. That's how they came to be sitting side by side against a wall under the stars.

"You know I'm going to miss this when we move," Sam mumbled.

"What sitting outside?"

"No," Sam retorted, elbowing Blaine in the side. "Stars. I just remembered that it was so hard to see the stars in New York. But that's a small loss compared to everything we're going to get, huh?"

"I can definitely do without stars if it gets us out of Lima," Blaine agreed. He glanced over at the silent Brittany. She was looking up at the stars with a longing look in her eye. "Britt, you okay?"

She tore her eyes away from the bright moon above to meet his gaze. For a second, he was struck by her eyes. They suddenly didn't look like the almost anime bright blue they resembled when she was hyper about something. They were old and infinite. Suddenly Brittany seemed so much older than eighteen. Then the second passed and she was back to normal. Blaine shook his head, wondering if he was starting to see things.

"So the fact that you're up here hiding from Mrs. Hummel means it's really over between you and Kurt, right?" Brittany asked, moving past the strange moment.

Blaine snorted. "Yeah, you could say that. It is definitely over between Kurt and me."

"Good," Sam blurted before blushing. "I just mean that we're going to New York and it's supposed to be a fresh start. I'm just happy that you're going to get your fresh start is all."

"Thanks, Sam," Blaine laughed, patting his friend on the knee. Sam groaned and pushed him on the ribs again. Blaine laughed harder, feeling completely comfortable and happy not for the first time. He thought he knew happiness with Kurt but this? This was what happiness felt like. Now if he could just keep these people exactly like this….

"Is anyone else scared out of their minds about Puck and Santana joining SHIELD? Like it was a cool concept until Puck actually got kidnapped. And that's like an everyday thing for them."

"It is terrifying," Sam admitted, poking at patch of dirt on the ground. "But they've got us. We're going to hold down things in New York. And Britt is gonna support from Massachusetts. We're going to get through this the same way we get through everything."

"Together?" Blaine said, smiling faintly. "So we're Team Normal?"

Sam snickered. "Well, yeah. I don't know about you guys but I'm definitely not likely to pop up with any superpowers any time soon." Brittany surprised them both by laughing loudly.

"Oh, foreshadowing," Brittany said around giggle.

Sam and Blaine exchanged looks before turning to the still amused blonde. "Britt, you know you said that out loud, right?"

"Did I?" she asked, blankly. "Doesn't matter yet anyway."

Before Blaine or Sam could press that issue any further, the door to the stairwell was opening once again. This time it was Puck, Santana and Rachel. Blaine forgot all about Brittany's weirdness as they settled into their familiar bickering and bantering. He really enjoyed this… these people. He was looking forward to having this for the rest of their lives.

He looked around the circle they unconsciously formed. Puck was opposite from him with Rachel practically sitting on his lap. She claimed it was because her skirt was too short to sit on the ground but really? Blaine heard better excuses from Sam when he and Mercedes were trying to hide their relationship. Santana was on Puck's left with her arm around Brittany's waist. Brittany in turn had her head on Santana's shoulder and their pinky fingers were loosely tangled together. Sam was next to Brittany but leaning against Blaine. His weight didn't feel weird or heavy. On the contrary, it felt comfortable and right. He was so not giving that anymore thought either, by the way. Nope, definitely not going down that road.

He was distracted from thinking about a possible future with Sam by Brittany sighing happily. Santana nudged her slightly. "What are you thinking about?"

Brittany sat up and smiled. "It's just that I've been waiting for this moment for so long. I kind of started thinking it was never going to happen."

Santana's brow furrowed. "Britt, you guys have barely been up here a half an hour. You couldn't possibly have been waiting that long."

"It's been at least fifty years," Brittany shrugged absently. "Give or take the few years that I thought you guys were all hallucinations. But now I know you're not. Yay!"

"What the hell?" Puck asked, staring at her with confusion evident in his eyes. Brittany gave him her usual bright smile. Puck blinked, staring into her eyes much like Blaine did earlier. It seemed that he saw the same thing as well because he shook his head and sat back. "Huh."

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"Really."

He shrugged. "Well, okay then."

"What the hell is that even supposed to mean?!"


	10. Broken Ones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there are some growing pains, time jumps and new friends. #NYClife

Nick watched the newest class of field agents with the faintest hint of a smile curving his lips. They were a larger class than they had before. The Battle of New York did a lot for recruitment. Both in terms of a need for more agents as well as bringing more focus to SHIELD as an agency. They were a promising bunch. He had a feeling that more than half of this class would be full-fledged agents within the year. Still, his eye was trained on two in particular. They were the youngest of the group at eighteen. There was a five year gap between them and the next youngest of the new recruits. Nick knew that they both collected more than their fair share of grief over the simple fact that they were young, and yet, neither of them complained. They let the comments about their high school graduation being less than three months ago slide off their backs. They trained harder than the others and now two months after beginning formal training to become an agent of SHIELD, it was definitely showing.

When they first started at the Academy, neither Puck nor Santana wanted to go in announcing that they had ties to any member of the Avengers. They wanted to become whoever they were meant to be within SHIELD without having their names, successes or failures associated with Clint, Steve or Natasha. Nick had to admit that he was very proud of their decision. He didn't know very many people that would've done that. Of the few legacy agents within SHIELD, there was only one that didn't come in exploiting his ties. If it wasn't for Clint, Nick isn't sure how long Triplett's identity as the grandson of a Howling Commando (not to mention the step grandson of Peggy Cater) would've gone unaddressed. And Trip was the first and only to refrain from name dropping until these two came along. They were determined to get through this own their own. Phil was right about them. They really did remind him of Clint. That was both a really great thing and a horrible, bad, terrible thing.

It was good because Clint remained one of his best agents. Despite what some may have been thinking (or stupidly saying) about the subject, it was true. Clint wasn't just given his Level 10 Clearance because Nick wanted to shut him up or keep him busy. Okay, well actually that was part of the reason but he also earned it. He earned his right to know some of the dirty laundry of SHIELD. He was one of only five agents that held the distinction of having a clearance that high. Even with that nasty Loki business, Clint remained a top agent of SHIELD. Nick really doubted that anything would knock the archer out of his esteem. And that's where the horrible, bad, terrible part of Santana and Puck reminding him of Clint stemmed from. Because just like Clint, both Santana and Puck came from broken homes and had self-esteem issues that were likely visible from space. Nick was rapidly coming to the conclusion that he just had a thing for broken teenagers because damned if he didn't like those two from the minute he met them. And that was before he saw what they could do.

"On your left, Sanchez!" Puck gleefully teased as he passed another recruit on the other agent's first lap. Nick fought the urge to smile at that one. He knew it was yet another thing Puck inherited from Steve. It was a little known fact that Steve Rogers was kind of a showoff. A smug one at that.

"How many times does this make now?" Nick murmured knowing the woman to his left was paying attention.

"He's passed Sanchez twice. He's passed Dormer about six times already. Pretty sure that guy is going to flunk out of training," Maria commented with a smile in her voice. "And the interesting part is I'm pretty sure he's holding back."

Nick crossed his arms over his chest as he watched Puck run backwards taunting the visibly pissed Sanchez with a smirk on his lips. He wasn't pretty sure the kid was holding back, he knew for a fact that Puck was holding back. Shortly after he arrived, it was clear that Puck had a lot more going on than just residual super soldier genes. Nick knew what Steve was capable of and Puck more than exceeded that. And he wasn't the only one. Not at all surprisingly, Santana was proving to be more than meets the eye as well. And only Nick knew that their skills most likely came from the same strand of alien DNA that they shared.

He still didn't know what to make of the whole Santana and Puck (and Sam) having alien DNA thing. There didn't appear to be any negative physical consequences best he could tell and neither of them showed any signs of mental instability. If anything, once Nick allowed them to have an area where they could fully show off without fear of backlash or further negativity from their fellow recruits, both seemed settled and comfortable in their own skin. They took the complaints and teasing from the others with a grain of salt. They held back but they let enough of what they were capable of shine through. Despite having only been in training for a few months, Nick was already getting requests from senior agents looking mentor the pair. Too bad those positions were already long filled. Clint and Steve practically stamped their name on Puck and Santana might as well take the codename Black Widow 2.0. She was her virtual double at least in regards to deadliness and calm under pressure.

Nick turned his focus from Puck towards Santana. Not surprisingly she had shown an almost disturbing efficiency for weapons of all kinds. She seemed especially fond of knives. He made a mental note to watch the amount of time Natasha and Santana spent together. Then again, he noticed a visible change in Natasha since she picked up her future junior agent. Natasha was less cold and standoffish. Maybe this was a two way street.

"She hasn't missed yet," Maria said, nodding her head to where Santana was occupied throwing daggers at the wall opposite from her by a good twenty meters away. She was hitting targets that should've been impossible to hit with unerring accuracy. Even the trash talking from the unnerved recruits beside her wasn't working as a distraction. She was calm and collected. Her face was perfectly blank as she threw knife after knife at the targets against the wall. For a second, Nick really believed he was looking at another Black Widow. He cleared his throat.

"Lopez, Puckerman," he yelled bringing all activities to a halt. The pair in question stood at attention waiting further instruction. He didn't fight the smile this time. "I believe you two have an appointment you're meant to be keeping."

Santana's eyes widened as she glanced up at the clock on the gym wall. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Seriously, it's seven already?"

Puck moved to stand by her. "You think we can get back to your room in time?" she started to reply when Nick cleared his throat again. They both stood to attention immediately.

"My office," Nick corrected. "Sitwell already has everything set up."

For a brief moment, the façade of hardened new recruits slipped away, giving way to the two teenagers that they still were. Both were wearing bright grins as they raced out of the door towards Nick's office and their standing weekly appointment. And he meant that they were literally racing. They might hold back in training with the other recruits but neither knew the meaning of the word restraint when it came to the other. Nick was pretty sure that anyone walking the hallways at the moment would probably report only seeing two blurs that appeared to be laughing on the way to his office.

"Are you ever going to tell me what they are?" Maria asked, once the others had gone back to their exercises.

"They're teenagers?"

"Funny, sir. You and I both know there is something more going on here. Except I know that you know exactly what's going on."

"Not exactly."

"But there is something," Maria retorted flatly. "I know that Puckerman is pretty much a super soldier but the formula doesn't account for everything he can do. I've seen Steve's track times. And Puckerman? He beats them hands down. The only one who comes even remotely close to Puckerman is Lopez. Last time I checked, she wasn't the distant relation of a super soldier. They are unlike anything SHIELD has ever seen before. Well, with the exception of Garza."

Nick frowned at the reminder of Agent Sarah Garza. If he had it his way, he would've buried her and the rest of her team so deep it would take generations of agents to find even a trace of their existence. However, the fact remained that Garza was now one of two people who touched this 'diviner' and lived to tell the story later. So she was spared from the full extent of his wrath simply because she may come in handy. The other three weren't so fortunate. Still, he couldn't punish them and not Garza. So after he let Agent Melinda May (she had a definite soft spot for Clint) and the other Avengers who promised not to murder the agents (aka not Natasha or Tony) have a go at them, Nick demoted the whole team to the basest of support staff. Their total and complete humiliation took place in front of the rest of SHIELD. It was a punishment and a warning to anyone else that thought their opinion of Clint superseded Nick's.

"Don't worry about them, Hill," he said, replying to Maria finally. "Just keep an eye on them. And if they start doing anything completely out of the ordinary, let me know."

"Like what? If they start flying or killing people with their minds?"

Nick snorted. "Yeah, exactly. Especially that last one. Everyone knows telepaths don't exist. I'd like to have the first." Maria rolled her eyes.

With that said, he turned on his heel and strolled towards his office. It was early but there were still a few agents already at their stations. Thankfully, his office was on a rather secluded corner of the building. He would hate for the hardworking early risers to be disturbed by the commotion coming from the two teens parked at his desk. He hovered in the doorway and watched as they slipped back into the easy going kids he met only a few short months ago. There was only one thing that could bring about that change at the drop of a dime. Or rather three particular people.

"Hey there, Uncle Nick!" Blaine's voice greeted from the computer screen.

Nick walked around the edge of the desk to stand behind the chair that Puck and Santana were sharing to look at the screen. There was a three way split. Brittany's bright yet tired grin stared at him from the top left. She looked like she had been up for a while. Or rather she hadn't gone to sleep at all. He glanced at her desktop and saw what looked like the beginnings of a robot on her desk. A robot unicorn…. Damn. He owed Blaine twenty dollars. Speaking of Blaine…. He looked at his self-appointed nephew on the top right hand screen. He and Sam were shoulder to shoulder. And it seemed like he wasn't the only one sitting in on the kids' Skype session. Nick could just make out a certain archer sitting on top of the kitchen counter directly behind them.

"Barton, don't you have anything better to do?"

"I think you know full damn well that I do not," Clint retorted petulantly. "Let's see I'm still on so called medical leave and am not allowed to step foot out of this Tower without an Avenger present or they're going to force the Hulk to babysit me aka make me watch My Little Pony with him. Steve is busy moping because Puck doesn't want to exploit their family connection. Thor is back in Asgard. Jane, Tony and Bruce have been doing science since like Sunday. Nat is on a mission. Without me. And Darcy and Cooper are off doing… stuff. I don't really want to know what's going on there because... gross. Blaine and Sam are still stuck on this idea of getting an education even though their school and everyone in it sucks. Britt is too far away. And the only other sources for my amusement are there at Headquarters and I can't go because apparently most of the agents want me dead."

Nick blinked at the impressive word vomit. He was happy to note that he was not the only one who was staring at the archer with a quizzical look. It was rare to hear Clint speak that many consecutive sentences. Maybe the kid really was as bored as he claimed to be.

"Wait, what's the big deal about them being in the lab since Sunday? It's only Monday," Puck pointed out, blatantly ignoring all the other wrong things that Clint just said. That boy was going to go far in this agency.

"Oh, yeah I meant last week Sunday," Clint answered, absently.

"They've been in the lab since last Sunday?" Santana asked, incredulously.

"Sadly, he's not exaggerating," Blaine winced. "Dad claims they're on the verge of some huge scientific breakthrough. On the bright side, there haven't been any explosions since Thursday. That's right around the time that Uncle Clint got bored."

Nick was a little concerned about that. Not the Bruce, Jane and Tony thing because he was used to those three holing themselves up in the lab in the name of science. No, he was mostly concerned about Clint. A bored Clint Barton was not a good Clint to have around. He knew the archer was feeling off center with all this downtime he found himself experiencing as of late. Taking into consideration the time they spent in Ohio and the two months medical leave, Clint was slowly starting to lose focus. Nick made a mental note to pull Phil for a couple of days. He always knew how to reel Clint in when he got like this.

"Uncle Clint?" Blaine asked warily, drawing Nick's attention back to the screen.

They all watched as Clint leaned forward as if trying to get a better of view of something. "Awesome! Thor is back. I'm going to see if I can bribe him into helping me sabotage the Mad Science Nerd's experiments. Probably won't take much. Later."

Nick could only watch in silent horror as Clint bounced away to do exactly that. He looked at Blaine who somehow managed to inherit common sense from someone because it clearly was not either of his parents. The youngest Stark nodded his head and turned to ask JARVIS to shut down whatever shenanigans Thor and Clint were about to engage in as well as whatever was keeping Jane, Bruce and Tony locked in a lab for a week. Satisfied that some sort of normalcy was going to reign again in the Tower, Nick took a seat on the old leather couch in the corner to allow Santana and Puck time to talk to their friends. He pulled out an old file even though he wasn't paying a word of attention to it. His focus was on the bantering between the five teenagers.

They might have been broken at some point through life but when he heard Santana and Puck interacting with Blaine, Sam and Brittany it was hard to see any sign of that. It's why he actively encouraged their weekly (and occasionally more) Skype sessions. He knew how much Clint suffered being the youngest field agent in training. He knew how much Clint still suffered. His age and childhood isolated him from the rest of his cohort. Clint struggled to find someone to relate to until he finally met Natasha almost five years after he joined SHIELD.

So Nick really didn't want to make that mistake again with Santana and Puck. He wanted them to hold onto the little sliver of innocence they had left. They were going to see enough ugliness through their work with SHIELD, he wanted them to hold onto this while they still could. He smiled as Santana giggled, leaning her head against Puck's shoulder as Brittany displayed her design. Puck's laughter mingled with hers when Thor came upon the chatting teens and had to be convinced that none of them were being held hostage by the computer.

Yeah, he would let them have as many of these moments as they could. Things were only going to get more complicated as they progressed as agents. This was the least he could do. Nick sighed as he realized once again, he was definitely in too deep. Again.  
_____________________________________________  
Clint was not too far off in his offhanded description of their school, Sam realized as he and Blaine walked through the halls of Upper Westside Preparatory Academy. He supposed he should be grateful that Tony was willing to pay Sam's tuition to what was really a high end, well respected high school. And he was. Tony could've easily slapped him in a regular public school or a GED program, but instead he volunteered to foot the bill for Sam's senior year. So he was grateful. Really… it's just that… it was becoming clear that both he and Blaine would probably have been better off at a regular public school.

They were still losers. Most of the students looked down on him because he was poor. The other kids hated Blaine because his father was too rich and a superhero. The overall consensus was that neither Sam nor Blaine belonged in the school. Sam almost missed the good old days when public disdain was just a slushy to the face. Now they had to deal with ridicule from the student body as well as a few of the teachers. Blaine believed that the reason why some of the teachers (both male and female) disliked them was because they were victims of his father's swinging single years. Sam could've gone lifetimes without ever really thinking about Tony's life before he settled down with Pepper. It's bad enough they had Cooper as a daily reminder of what Tony was capable of before Pepper tamed him.

But none of that mattered to Sam. It was true, they were losers yet again but at least they had each other. He grinned at Blaine as his best friend settled down at the lunch table opposite from him with a tense expression on his face.

"What are you so damn happy about?" he asked peevishly.

"Just thinking that no matter how crappy this whole school thing is, I'm glad I've got you," Sam shrugged, taking a bite out of his burger. One silver lining in this situation was that the school had a professional chef in the kitchen. He made burgers so good Sam was ready to hand over his first born child.

"You know that you make it really difficult to be bitter when you go around saying stuff like that," Blaine pointed out, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"Also I was thinking that we have a long weekend coming up so we might get some actual in person time with Puck and Santana, especially if you beg Uncle Nick. Brittany said she's probably going to come down like Thursday afternoon. She said she's finished with her lab work anyway so no one is expecting her to be around this weekend."

"Wait, if she finished already then what she was working on this morning?"

"Next semester's project," Sam shrugged at Blaine's incredulous look. He didn't try to understand how the other blonde's mind worked. Brittany was a mystery wrapped in an enigma. It would be insane to try and understand her mindset. Clearly, Blaine missed that memo.

"About Brittany…. Have you given anymore thought to her whole she's been waiting for us for fifty years thing?"

Sam raised an eyebrow. "No, but clearly you have."

Blaine huffed. "That doesn't strike you as odd?"

"It's Brittany! Almost everything she says or does is kind of odd. I mean she's building a robot unicorn, dude. No good can come of that. I learned to ignore what she says. Besides Puck usually understands her and he doesn't think anything's wrong, does he?"

"No, he said it was fine. But still," Blaine muttered, toying with the end of his tie. Sam narrowed his eyes at his utterly together looking best friend.

That was another downside of private school… uniforms. Blaine was used to it with Dalton but Sam was not. The uniform was fairly simple. Gray slacks with white button down shirts, ties and black blazers. Even though everything was tailored to perfection, Sam still felt out of place and awkward in his uniform. Blaine, on the other hand, looked like his was born in a get up just like this. It wasn't just the fancy clothes either. Blaine looked great in everything he wore. Literally everything. There had to be some kind of law against that.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

Sam flushed. "Like what? I'm not looking at you any particular way. Just the regular way that I always look at you. Not that I always look at you because I don't. Not that it would be weird or wrong if I did because we're friends and friends can look at each other… right?"

Blaine blinked. "Right. Okay, never mind. So did you give any thought to the community service project we're supposed to be doing so we can graduate and get the hell out of this place?"

"I was thinking something with the homeless," Sam replied absently. "I remember what it was like. And there are so many people who are homeless in this city. I figured it would be nice to give back."

Blaine smiled softly. "Yeah, I guess it would be. You want some help with that?"

"Of course," Sam replied with a smile of his own. He didn't know how long they sat there smiling at each other like idiots but he did know it was interrupted way too soon by a few of the students from their school.

"You guys are totally adorable!" a voice squealed before suddenly they were surrounded by six of their fellow students. Sam exchanged confused glances with Blaine. Oh, what the hell? "You're such a cute couple."

"We're not a couple," they replied in unison.

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry! I just assumed that since he was poor and living with you that he was your boyfriend."

Sam groaned and let his head slam down on the table. He really, really missed the days when the form of torture was just a slushy to the face and not a constant reminder of your economic status… or in Sam's case, lacking economic status.

"Sam is my best friend," Blaine corrected. "He's living with me for that reason alone. No one asked for your opinions on the subject. Nor did we ask for you to sit here. So if you have a problem or an opinion, keep it to yourself and get away from our table."

Sam lifted his head to look at Blaine. The brunette met his waiting gaze with a smirk. Sam felt him smiling in response. He cleared his throat and sat up straight. "What he said."

"Look," one of the other five started, throwing a dirty look at her friend. "We didn't come here to pick a fight. Amber here has a tendency to talk first and think never." Amber scoffed but then eventually nodded her head in agreement. "I'm Jackie. That's Eric, Robin, Kevin, Megan and of course, Amber."

"That's super. Why are you here?" Blaine asked, sounding way too much like his father.

"Is this you?" Eric asked, pushing his phone across the table so that it was between the two friends but it was only facing Blaine. It was opened to the YouTube app. Sam craned his neck to see it was a video of them performing at Regionals. Sam smiled softly at the memory of that performance. True, it all ended horribly with Quinn's accident but it was fun up until that moment. He didn't even know someone recorded it much less posted it online. But there it was.

Blaine's eyes narrowed as he watched himself rapping alongside Santana. Sam knew he was most likely criticizing his performance. That's why it took him a moment to realize that Eric was still waiting for an answer. Sam cleared his throat pointedly.

"Oh, right. Yeah, that's me. Why do you ask?"

"I'm going to cut straight to the point," Jackie said, leaning towards him. "You're talented, cute and have exactly the right image for our club. We would like to formally invite you to audition for the Upper Westside High Notes."

Blaine's brow furrowed. "You want us to join your glee club?"

The six teens exchanged awkward glances and Sam picked up on the tension right away. He snorted. "No, pretty sure they want you to join their glee club, dude. Not me. I don't have the right image or financial clout."

"Is that true?" Blaine asked, though their silence and unwillingness to meet either of their eyes was kind of all the answer they needed. "This is unbelievable."

"I understand that he's your friend and all. But the High Notes have a long standing history of social and financial success. We cannot allow just anyone to join," Robin replied. "That might not be how you did things in your little glee club before. But that's how they're done here."

"Great," Blaine said, sharply. "Then we have nothing further to discuss."

"Does that mean you're going to accept our position?"

"Not even if you paid me," Blaine admitted. "You're right our 'little glee club' did run things differently than you guys. We didn't care who joined as long as they were passionate about singing and music. That might be why we've gone to Nationals twice and won once. How did you guys do at Nationals?"

"We didn't make it that far," Megan retorted through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. I'm not interested in participating in the snobbery that seems to permeate this place. My father has never looked down on anyone and I'm not about to start. So thanks for the invitation but I have to respectfully decline your invitation."

"Seriously?!" Amber cried.

"How did you really think this was going to play out? The entire student body has looked down on both myself and Sam since the school year started. You talk about us behind our backs. Sometimes even to our faces. Did you really think I was going to say yes?"

"Maybe we got off on the wrong foot," Jackie tried. "It's just that you're Tony Stark's son. No one really knew what you were going to be like. Most people thought you were going to be a carbon copy of your father. Others thought you were going to be worse. So there were some preconceived notions of you going around school already. No one really knew what to do when you came in and were so… normal."

Blaine rolled his eyes and Sam had to chew on his lip to avoid laughing. He really wished he had the presence of mind to record this from the beginning. Puck and Santana would've loved it. They were experiencing their own form of social isolation at SHIELD. They were both long overdue for a laugh. Oh well, they would just have to settle for Sam's detailed play by play.

"You'll have to forgive me for not really buying that as an excuse," Blaine replied, smoothly. "I'm not interested in joining your glee club now or even in the future. Now if you'll excuse us, I'm trying to have lunch with my poor best friend."

Sam didn't hide the smile as they finally realized that they were getting nowhere with Blaine. Eventually they grumbled in disappointment and finally left the table. As soon as they were effectively out of hearing range, Blaine let out a deep sigh.

"You know, you didn't have to do that for me," Sam said. Blaine threw him a look. "I'm just saying. I know you like performing. It might have been fun."

"You know what I loved the most about performing with the Warblers and New Directions?" Sam shook his head. "I was performing with my friends. It was fun because I was with people that I cared about and that cared about me in return. That's what made it a great experience. Those guys don't care about anything but their image." He toyed with the straw to his soda. "Plus that girl Amber reminded me of Sugar. And I definitely couldn't do another year of that!"

Sam laughed. He gave Blaine an appreciative look. "So we stick together?"

"Always."  
_____________________________________________  
Puck pushed the Stark created and gifted tablet higher up on his raised legs so that the camera was better focused on his face and not so much on the bare wall behind his head. Still, he could read the silent judgment in Blaine's eyes even if his friend was managing to avoid commenting on the lack of decoration. For now. Blaine liked to give him a lot of crap about how his room looked like a minimalist's wet dream. But there was always something underlying the teasing. This little hint of concern that grated on Puck's nerves because it meant that Blaine had an idea of why Puck's room was so bare. And Puck did not want Blaine having ideas. That tended to lead to attention and he really, really hated attention lately.

"So Hogwarts laid the verbal smack down, huh?" Santana asked, bringing his attention back to the screen. His partner in training leaned forward, glaring at the bottom half of the screen where Sam was sitting. "And the reason that there is no footage is….?"

"How was I supposed to know that Blaine was going to verbally eviscerate them?" Sam protested. "Isn't telling you about it enough?"

"You're failing me here, Trouty Mouth. You're failing me."

There was a faint snicker from the other side of Puck's room. He tore his eyes away from the tablet screen to focus on his roommate and future science tech, Donnie Gill. There was a random jumbled chorus of hellos for the other teen from his three friends.

"You guys are weird," was all Donnie said as he excused himself from the room, still laughing quietly to himself. Puck smiled faintly. He liked Donnie. He was a good guy. A little socially awkward but he was a good guy.

"Okay, so now that you're well and truly alone," Blaine started, all traces of levity gone from his voice. "How's training really going?"

"Fine," Puck answered automatically. Blaine continued to glare. "Okay, so it's not perfect but I kind of expected this. Clint gave me the rundown on what to expect as a teenaged agent of SHIELD."

"And it's the same for you, San?"

"No," she admitted reluctantly. "Apparently the fact that I carry a really big knife around somehow intimidates the others so they really don't bother me as much as they bother Puck. But that's because he barely shows what he's capable of."

"I do stuff," Puck countered.

"Yeah right. Even that thing with Sanchez this morning. You could run laps around that jerk before he's even done with one. But you're holding back."

"You are too."

"Yeah, because you do!"

"Children," Blaine warned. "The point is that if it's getting really bad, you should say something to Uncle Nick or even your grandfather. You know the guy that you've barely spoken to since you started training."

"Definitely no," Puck shook his head. "It's bad enough that they're ragging on me because of my age. How do you think it's going to go over that I had to get my grandfather and our boss involved? It's just going to make shit more super awkward than it already is."

"So what's your plan?"

"Just ignore it goes away," he shrugged. "They have to find something else to do eventually. Hopefully. Maybe."

The three disapproving glares he received showed just how much they trusted that one but thankfully that was all that was said on the subject. The rest of the time was spent making plans to hang out. The trainees were granted some downtime this weekend and he had every intention of going back to the Tower to his room that felt like home. He was going back to the place he belonged. He disconnected the call after taunting Sam and Blaine about having school in the morning and placed his tablet on his nightstand.

"Dude, when are you going to put up something that makes it look like someone else lives here too?" Donnie asked, as he came back into the room. Puck raised an eyebrow.

"You've been listening to way too many of my conversations with Blaine."

"You ever going to explain how you know Blaine Stark anyway?"

"We went to high school together," Puck replied. "I found out about SHIELD through him and here I am."

"Yeah," Donnie cast a critical eye around the room before meeting Puck's gaze pointedly. "Here you are."

"Don't start!" Puck warned, pointing at him. Donnie rolled his eyes before climbing under his sheets. "I heard Sitwell got sent on a mission this afternoon. You heard who's replacing him for classes tomorrow yet?"

"Get this, Agent Hill somehow convinced Agent Morse to cover the field agents' classes." Puck stared at him blankly. "Agent Barbara Morse? How do you not know who she is?! What are they teaching you in field agent training?"

"Shut it, nerd," Puck retorted playfully. "So who is she?"

"She's Mockingbird and she's only one of the more badass agents in this place. Seriously, she's only second in deadliness to the Black Widow. That's kind of funny when you consider the fact that Agent Morse is actually the ex-wife of Agent Barton."

"What the?" Puck sputtered. Ex-wife? Clint was married at some point to someone who was not Natasha Romanov?!

"Yeah, you do know who Hawkeye is right? He is the youngest agent in the history of SHIELD to be recruited. He was even younger than you, junior."

"Shut up! You're only like six months older than me! That doesn't even count."

"It totally counts. Those six months clearly gave me more wisdom and insight into how the world works. You would do well to learn from me, grasshopper." Puck laughed and threw his pillow across the room.

There was a muffled echoing laughter from Donnie's side of the room before the pillow was flung back towards him. He caught it in one hand, ignoring Donnie's muttered 'show off' comment before sinking down in his not as uncomfortable as he thought mattress. He flicked the light off on the lamp at his bedside with an absent smile. Maybe he did have a place here. Maybe it was time that he showed it. As he drifted off to sleep he made a silent promise to ask Blaine and Sam to help him pick out some stuff that would make his dorm room feel more like home when he was back the Tower that weekend. Because maybe he was just as at home here as he was at the Tower. Maybe he did belong.  
_____________________________________________  
Santana kept Puck in her peripheral vision as they completed the next series of challenges in their substitute trainer's class the next day. He was in a visibly good mood almost as if he reached some sort of internal conclusion that fixed his lingering emo. That was good because she was really starting to worry about him. Thankfully, the melancholy that was starting to creep up on him wasn't there. Today he seemed settled and comfortable if not a little cockier than ever before. Oh well, she would take that over mopey Puck. She was definitely not a fan of mopey Puck. Nor was a she a fan of anyone or anything that made him feel mopey. Thankfully she didn't have to hurt anyone or anything because her best friend was in a great mood and it was only going to get better once they got to go home for a little while. Everything was looking up… until it very suddenly wasn't.

"Listen up everyone," Bobbi Morse whistled bringing an end to the separate conversations and general chatter in the room. Santana looked to Puck again which is why she was able to witness the color draining from his face. He looked like he was going to be sick. She was about to make her way to his side when Bobbi kept talking. "I would like you all to meet my best friend, Agent Sharon Carter aka Agent 13."

Sharon… Carter. Oh no. Santana swallowed as she looked from the horrified Puck to Sharon who stood next to Bobbi seemingly oblivious to the effect she was having on her cousin. She probably didn't even recognize him. The last time anyone from that side of the family saw Puck was when he was much younger. So young that his dad leaving them was a fresh wound that could be easily exploited. So young enough that he hadn't learned to build the shields he needed to protect himself from their hurtful words. Santana knew that Sharon wasn't that much older than them but she knew that the other woman was old enough that she was probably a participant in the last family gathering that ended with Puck sealing the more vulnerable Noah behind emotional walls so impenetrable they would make Fort Knox weep with envy.

"So anyone have any questions for Agent Carter?" Bobbi asked with a teasing hint to her voice. Sharon rolled her eyes playfully. "Yes, Sanchez?"

"Is it true that your grand aunt is Agent Peggy Carter?"

"Yes," Sharon replied with a bright smile. "She is one of the original founders of SHIELD along with Howard Stark. I joined SHIELD to be a testament to my aunt's amazing work. I'm just happy to continue her legacy."

Santana fought the urge to gag. She probably did mean the words but this woman hurt her friend. Her sheer presence in the room right now was hurting her friend now. Therefore she hated everything about Sharon Carter. She ignored the rest of the sheep she called a cohort who were falling over themselves to get to talk to the great Sharon Carter and instead focused on pushing through them to get to Puck. Finally she reached his side and sighed in relief as she was able to wrap her hand around his arm.

"Hey, you need to get out of here?"

Puck let out a slow breath. "Hell yes."

Santana forced herself to laugh and keep it light as she steered him towards the front of the crowd. She tried to get Bobbi's attention which was easy as all focus was on Sharon. She watched as the older agent narrowed her eyes, no doubt taking in Puck's pale and pained expression.

"You feeling okay, Noah?"

"Not really," he admitted. "Can I possibly be excused from the rest of the class?"

Bobbi tilted her head to the side, almost as if she were trying to determine whether he was telling the truth. Finally she nodded and Santana released the breath she didn't know she was holding. "But first I want to introduce you to Sharon."

"Fuck," Santana muttered.

"Hey, Carter, these are the kids I was telling you about. This is Santana Lopez and Noah Puckerman."

Santana watched as the smile on Sharon's face slid off as the name finally registered for her. Her expression darkened as she looked between Puck and Bobbi. She settled on Puck after a few long moments with a glare on her formerly pleasant features.

"Noah? What the hell are you doing here?"

Puck swallowed, looking everywhere but at his cousin. "Oh, you know. Chilling. Trying to be a part of the Carter legacy. You know basic shit. You?"

"That's hilarious," she snapped in a tone that implied anything but amusement. "How did you even find out about SHIELD? I know Aunt Peggy never told you. She knew that you weren't SHIELD material."

"Wait, are you telling me that Puckerman is related to you? Related to Agent Carter?" Bobbi asked slowly. By now the other trainees were starting to pay attention as evidenced by the surprised gasps all around.

"Unfortunately," Sharon replied coldly. "He's what we like to call the black sheep of the family." She continued to stare at Puck without a hint of warmth in her glare. Santana really didn't like that look on her face. "You don't belong here, Noah. I mean how did you even get in? You barely passed high school. And you continued your family tradition of having a baby and committing a felony before you were even sixteen. You have no right coming here and trying to claim any part of the Carter legacy. You might be her great grandson but you're nothing more than a chronic failure and…."

Santana never felt more satisfaction from the simple act of slapping someone in her entire life than she did in that moment. Her hand stung like crazy but damned if that didn't feel good. She could care less about the fact that she just assaulted someone who was probably considered her senior officer. The bitch was lucky all she did was slap her. Sharon gaped at her in disbelief but Santana held a hand up silencing any comment about to spill from her lips.

"You know I heard all about Agent 13. I heard that she was smart and brave and the textbook example of what of what an agent of SHIELD should look like. But right now I don't see any of that. All I see is someone who is either blind or too incredibly ignorant to function. That's the only explanation of why you're incapable of looking at the evidence right in front of your face and seeing that your family's petty resentment against a child that was born into less than ideal circumstances is clouding your ability to see how crazy awesome that child really is." She took a deep breath before swinging around to face a shocked silent Bobbi. "FYI, we're taking the rest of the day. Possibly the rest of the week."

"Uh, yeah," she blinked. "Go ahead."

Santana didn't say anything further. She simply steered a far quiet Puck through the gawking gaggle of students and out into the hallway. She didn't stop tugging him along until they were finally a suitable distance away. She felt his arm shaking under her touch.

"Talk to me," Santana pleaded. "What are you thinking?"

"I… I was wrong, San," he whispered shakily. To her horror there were honest to god tears forming in his eyes. "I don't belong here. She's right. I'm not a testament to my great grandmother, I'm a black mark. I don't belong here."

"Puck, that's…." she didn't get a chance to finish that statement as Puck was wrenching his arm out of her grasp and tearing away down the hall. "Oh sure now he doesn't hold back!" she wiped her hand over her face in exasperation before finally pulling out her phone to call Donnie, hoping that he not only picked up but was close enough to be of assistance. Because this had the potential to get bad. Really, really bad. Like Avengers getting involved bad. "Donnie, please tell me you're in your room!"  
_____________________________________________  
At least she waited. Sharon winced as she saw the look in Bobbi's eye. She knew what the look meant. They were going to talk. And Bobbi was going to say things that she really, really wasn't going to like. She instructed the rest of the class to complete some mundane drill before finally approaching Sharon with that look. Sharon braced herself.

"Share, how long have we been friends?"

Okay, that was not at all how she expected this to go down. "Uh, about five years now."

"You know that I trust you and I think that you're an amazing agent, right?"

"Of course."

"Good. Because what just happened right now was not cool." There it was. "First off, it was unprofessional as hell. And it was cruel."

"You don't know Noah like I do," she countered, though the argument sounded weak even to her ears.

"Actually I think Lopez was right and you don't know him very well either. I think that you're just regurgitating crap you've heard your family say through the years. Because that kid? He's SHIELD material. He's got beyond peak human skills. His ability to think on his feet is incredible. I was going to say that the only other person I've seen come up with plans that quick was you. Now I see it was genetic." Sharon pursed her lips thoughtfully. "The kid came with a personal recommendation from Director Fury. "

Sharon chewed on her lip. She was really not expecting this today. Especially since both Santana and Bobbi had a point. There was a long standing grudge between her mother, aunts, uncles and Noah's grandmother and consequently their children. It didn't help that everything she heard about her three cousins from Aaron and Elizabeth, kind of validated her mother and aunts' beliefs. But maybe it didn't. Because here Noah was in SHIELD and apparently doing well enough to earn Fury's personal attention. Still….

"He probably dropped Aunt Peggy's name."

"Oh, like you did?"

Sharon narrowed her eyes, glaring at her friend. Bobbi giggled. "Oh shut up!"

"Seriously," Bobbi said, once the urge to laugh seemed to pass. "You really need to sort through your damage with him because Director Fury vouched for him. We all know there are very few people that Fury has personally vouched for. And by few I mean three."

"Coulson, Hill and Barton," Sharon replied easily. "He's really doing well?"

"Amazingly well. Even without knowing who he was related to, the kid stands out. There have been more than a few agents circling around who want to personally mentor him and Santana but Hill shot them down. Said they were already spoken for. And though they're keeping quiet about the whole thing, I'm pretty sure given who's involved with them that I know the two agents that are claiming them."

"Barton and Romanov," Sharon shook her head.

Maybe it was time to rethink her view when it came to Noah Puckerman. First, she didn't want to end up like Garza and her team who went against someone that Fury cared about. Second, she knew how closed off both Natasha and Clint were. If they were laying claims to Puck and Santana then that meant they were both something special. And not just for their skills.

"Yup!" Bobbi replied, popping the 'p' at the end of the word with extra emphasis. "You know how vindictive Clint can be. I definitely wouldn't go around attacking your cousin anymore. It's probably not going to end well."

"I didn't attack him!"

"You put his whole life on display. I learned more about him in that five minutes than I learned from reading his training file."

Sharon ran a hand through her hair. She really didn't intend to attack him when she started talking but she could see very clearly that was exactly what she did. She dredged up every single dirty thing her family had ever said about the kid and put it all out there for everyone to see. Even if she believed most of that was true, she had no right doing that in front of an audience. Especially an audience of significantly older peers that would have no qualms about using that information against him.

"Ugh, I'm such a bitch," she murmured.

"Yeah, but you're my bitch if it makes you feel better," Bobbi said, squeezing her shoulders.

"Surprisingly, it really doesn't," Sharon retorted, shrugging her off with a slight smile. "I'll find him and apologize later."

"Yeah, I'm sure he's fine."

"Yeah," Sharon nodded. She almost kind of believed that too.

It was sad that she was ridiculously excited by the random squeals that went around the room suddenly as it distracted her from her thoughts of how badly she screwed this up.

"What's going on?" Bobbi asked, bringing them all to attention.

"Captain America is in the building!" one of the cadets answered with a dreamy smile. Sharon felt a smile forming against her will. Another Captain America fan boy.

"He's probably here to meet with Director Fury, so calm down," Bobbi ordered.

"No, he's headed towards the dorms!" another one chimed in.

Sharon and Bobbi exchanged looks. Captain America was headed towards the dorms that typically housed trainees during their time at the Academy. What business could he possibly have over there? Sharon glanced out the window not surprised to see that there was influx of people headed towards the dorms. News spread quickly around here.

"Uh, you know what? Class is dismissed," Bobbi said, decisively. "Come on, partner. I am dying to meet Captain America."

"You're such a fan girl!" Sharon teased even as Bobbi dragged her out the room. "Hasn't it only been like five minutes since you signed the divorce papers with Hunter? You working on getting another ex-husband to go in your collection?"

"Oh, shut up!"

Truthfully, Sharon was just as eager to meet the man as well. Even long after his supposed death, it was clear that her aunt was in love with Steve Rogers. If he had lived, there was no doubt that they would've been married and raised a beautiful family together. But life didn't work that way and instead Peggy moved on past her first love and ultimately married and had two children that managed to stay out of the spy game. When her husband, Daniel, died, Peggy found new love with one of her beloved Howling Commandoes and brought in even more cousins for Sharon. Family reunions were even more fun with the addition of Gabe Jones and his children and grandchildren. Sharon never really thought how it must've been for Puck and Darcy growing up. They missed all of those events. They were cast aside by the family and shunned for things they had no control in.

She felt guilt and remorse in equal amounts. She really needed to find a way to apologize to Noah. Maybe she could meet Captain America and convince him to speak to her cousin. He seemed like the kind of guy that would do that. She smiled lightly feeling slightly better knowing that she was going to make up for her rude and terrible behavior after all.  
_____________________________________________  
Donnie Gill was never destined to be a big damn hero. He knew that. He accepted that. He was opposed to all things physical and rather enjoyed being behind the scenes. His parents encouraged him to embrace science and other forms of knowledge. They were against him doing physical activities. He was fine with it. He was home schooled anyway. Not exactly like there was a football team for him to join. It wasn't until he was about to enter college at the age of fourteen that he finally realized that he grew up without friends or any type of social interaction aside from his parents. He even completed his degree online. Still he managed to make an impression on his professors and they encouraged him to apply to the science and technology program at the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division Academy. He did it without his parents' permission with the hope that he could finally break out of his shell and even make some friends. That didn't work out so well until the Powers that Be decided to move Noah Puckerman into his life… and his room.

Initially Puck was rooming with Eugene Sanchez but it soon seemed that the older Sanchez didn't see their rivalry as quite so friendly and instead chose to harass the younger recruit even during their downtime. So living arrangements were shaken up and Donnie was suddenly living with the larger than life Noah Puckerman. Donnie worried at first that Puck would be like all the other field agent trainees, who were quite fond of mocking the "future lab geeks". But Puck defied his expectations upon their very first meeting. He actually seemed interested in Donnie's work. He didn't seemed annoyed when Donnie slipped into science speak. He was surprisingly capable of keeping up with him when he went on his nerdy rants.

Puck turned out to be a really great person who actually called Donnie a friend. Puck wasn't like Seth, who was only friends with Donnie because he was using his intelligence. Puck seemed to genuinely like Donnie. Even his friends seemed to take a liking to Donnie. Donnie wasn't dumb enough to believe that any of them cared about Donnie for Donnie. They cared about him because he was their friend's roommate. He knew that Santana especially liked to keep tabs on Puck. So he was used to getting random phone calls from the Latina checking on who would inevitably become her partner once they completed training (and he didn't believe for a second that anything could or would keep them from completing training). But he never got one where she sounded this frantic.

[i]"Donnie, please tell me you're in your room!" [/i]

Donnie blinked at the desperation in her voice. "Yeah, I just got back. Why? What's up?"

[i]"It's Puck. He's really upset and I'm worried he's going to do something stupid. Like try to pack up his stuff and move out."[/i]

Donnie frowned. "Pack up what stuff? He barely unpacked anything as it is." Santana cursed in a mix of different languages. "Was that Bulgarian and Russian?"

[i]"Yeah, I have a friend teaching me," [/i]Santana replied, dismissively. [i]"Look just keep him in the room as long as you can. I'll be there in a minute."[/i]

With that said, she disconnected the call. Donnie felt his brow furrow. She was going to be here in a minute? The training building was at least a good fifteen minute walk from the dorms. There was no way she was going to be here that quick. But on a bright side, neither would Puck. If all of this just went down he had at least a good ten minutes to figure out how he was going to keep Puck in the room…. or not.

He jumped as the door to the room slammed open and Puck came breezing into the room, pulling out a duffel bag and throwing the few things he had actually unpacked into the bag haphazardly. Donnie blinked as the slightly younger teen whirled around the room almost dizzyingly fast.

"Puck? You okay, man?"

Puck ignored him, instead focusing on his closet and then the dresser. For a brief moment, Donnie contemplated jumping in front of him and demanding his attention but he was a lot smarter than that. He may not be in the field agent training but he has seen enough of it to know that Puck was way above his skill level. He was not about to get his ass handed to him by his emotionally unstable roommate. Still it was becoming clear that Puck was definitely going to take off if there wasn't some kind of intervention. Thankfully it came less than a minute later in the form of Santana Lopez.

He watched as the brunette ignored all the signs and warnings cautioning her against invading Puck's personal space as she pushed him against a dresser. Donnie winced imagining the worst but nothing happened. Puck let his bag drop from his hand as he gave into the embrace Santana was offering.

"You can't leave," she muttered against his shoulder.

"I don't belong here. Sharon was right."

"Sharon might be your cousin but she's a first class bitch," Santana retorted, rearing back to glare at him. "You're not going to let her stop you. You wanted to do this from the minute Clint told you about SHIELD. You cannot turn your back on it now. This is who you were meant to be. You believed that at some point and I still believe it."

Puck shook his head. "It's not just Sharon. It's everyone. None of them believe I can do it. Even some of the agents think I'm too young or too something."

"Puck," Santana sighed, clearly at a loss for words. That's okay because Donnie had more than a few.

"Hi, sorry. I'm a little lost here. Trying to catch up and all. Did I just hear what I think I heard? Your cousin is Sharon Carter? Your cousin is the grandniece of Peggy Carter?"

"Yeah. I guess."

"That would either mean you're the grandnephew of Peggy Carter or…."

"Her great-grandson," Santana answered with a hint of pride.

Donnie was really glad that he was sitting down because really? His roommate was the great grandson of the founder of SHIELD and he wasn't screaming that from the mountaintops. Then again he also had some sort of friendship with one of the newly discovered Stark heirs and some kind of connection to the Director that involved him making private video calls from the Director's office. So it seemed that his roommate had some really good friends in high places.

"That's amazing," Donnie finally said, running a hand through his hair. "Seriously, your family is a pretty huge deal around here."

"My family hates me," Puck countered, making Donnie wished he never opened his stupid mouth. Especially when he spotted tears shining in the hazel depths. "From the minute I was born, all I ever heard from them was how I was a disappointment. And it hasn't changed. It's never going to change."

"That's not entirely true is it?" a new voice chimed into the ever escalating scene of doom. Donnie opened his mouth to snap at the newcomer and tell them now was definitely not a good time when he actually got a look at their visitor. "About your family, I mean. It's not entirely true that things won't change with your family, is it?"

"Captain America?!"

"Steve, thank god," Santana muttered.

"Grandpa," Puck mumbled.

Donnie blinked at the two friends. "Seriously? Captain America is your grandfather?!"

"Great grandfather," Steve corrected with a grin, walking into the room and pushing the door to slightly closed behind him. He looked around the room critically. "Blaine was right. Your side does look empty. And I know it's not a lack of funds. Tony offered you his credit card. So what's really the problem?"

Puck sighed, sitting down on the bed. Santana immediately sat next to him in case he got any ideas. But Donnie recognized the look in his roommate's eyes. It was the look of someone who just needed to be told he belonged. Donnie knew that look well.

"It's not about the money. I just… I don't think I can do this. I'm not SHIELD material. I'm like probably the worst possible candidate on paper."

"Pretty sure the worst possible candidate was the one hundred pound weakling with asthma that couldn't even get in the army," Steve reminded him. Puck snorted and nodded slowly. "But they took a chance and I'd say I turned out pretty well."

"Super soldier serum helped a little," Puck answered with a hint of a smile.

"Yeah, it helped a bit," Steve laughed. "And need I remind you about the guy that, along with his friends, ensured that an entire school building full of teenagers were safe from harm by kidnappers. That same guy was also later kidnapped himself while in the course of protecting a friend. That same guy also later escaped using only his brains and made sure that his two friends were also protected. That same guy that basically was only waiting for the Avengers to give him a ride because he already saved himself. That guy is SHIELD material. Wouldn't you say?"

Puck's face flushed even as he looked down at his hands. "I guess maybe."

"No, no maybes. Do I need to get Clint over here? Because he would be more than willing to confirm it for you. I've seen your test results so far, kid. No one can take that away from you. You're going to be amazing." Steve kneeled down so he could look Puck in the eye. "For the record, you've made me so incredibly proud. I know Peggy would feel the same way."

Puck looked up at him with a more serene expression on his face. He nodded slightly. "Thanks, grandpa."

"None necessary," Steve replied, clapping him on the shoulder. Santana leaned against Puck and smiled at Steve.

"What are you doing here anyway? You couldn't have possibly found out about what happened that fast."

"I was already here," Steve admitted. "I was here to appeal to Nick and see if I could spring you two for the rest of the week. I was actually planning on going later but Sam kept telling me that I needed to come now. Guess he was right."

"Yeah," Puck agreed, rising to his feet. "So now what?"

"So now, I'm still springing you for the rest of the week with or with Fury's permission. But first, we're going to actually unpack your stuff and put it away because you definitely belong here until you're done with training. Of course once you're done you belong at the Tower. But I digress, after we finish unpacking, I'm supposed to be collecting you two and Mr. Gill over here and taking you back to the Tower where Sammy, Blaine and Brittany who showed up about an hour ago are not patiently waiting to see you. Expect snuggles."

"They know about all of this?" Puck asked hesitantly.

"Oh yeah," Steve replied, slinging an arm around his shoulder. "I'm pretty sure that Thor and the Hulk are the only thing keeping them from storming the place right now. So we might want to hurry before they do some serious damage to the Tower and Tony disowns us all. Some of us don't have another place to stay. Although I think Clint somehow owns an apartment building in Brooklyn. I would ask but I really think my sanity depends on never knowing how he got an apartment building in Brooklyn."

Puck laughed, nodding his head. He then looked to Donnie. "What do you say, roomie? You want to have dinner at the Avengers Tower with a bunch of snuggle happy idiots and some superheroes?"

Donnie arched an eyebrow. "Dude, why are we even still discussing this?" he moved to take one of the boxes off the bed. "You want this stuff over here or by the window?"

Puck smiled softly. "Anywhere. We all know Santana is going to change it around anyway." Santana grinned.

"I love that you know me so well!"

"Hey! Less talking and more unpacking! We have dinner to get to!"

"Oh, Tony is going to love him," Steve replied dryly.

"Oh my god, I'm going to meet Tony Stark and Dr. Bruce Banner!"

Puck and Santana laughed as they each picked up one of the long forgotten boxes storing Puck's stuff and finally set about making the room look more like home.  
_____________________________________________  
Sharon and Bobbi took a step away from the door and exchanged wide eyed looks. She freely admitted that her mind was just blown. No one knew who Sarah Carter's father was. No one ever bothered to speculate. She was something that shouldn't have existed. She was the child of an unwed mother in the 1940s. Sharon wondered how different Sarah's life would've been if people knew she was the only child of Captain America. She also wondered how different Noah and Darcy and little Sarah's lives would've been if her family knew that. But as she stood outside the door listening to the bantering between Santana, Puck and Steve that was unscored by obvious affection and care, she realized that it shouldn't have mattered. Peggy's family was wrong for denying Sarah for so long. It's what led Sarah to be estranged from her own mother for so long. Her family was wrong for shunning Sarah and her children and their children. Just as Sharon was wrong for carrying that grudge on today.

"So did you hear what you needed to hear?"

Sharon squeaked even as she and Bobbi whirled around to face Nick Fury himself. She swallowed several times before finally looking to Bobbi. The other woman blinked.

"Uh, I'm not sure what you're talking about, sir. We came here to check on Puckerman. He wasn't feeling well earlier."

Nick snorted. "I almost believed that one. Good job, Morse. But no, you really came here to appease your guilt after you put Puckerman's life on blast in front of a room full of people who would love to use that information against him."

Sharon tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Sir, I take full responsibility. I was wrong."

"Yes, you were," Nick agreed. "And I'm sure that he would love to hear your apology someday. But I don't recommend that being today."

Sharon nodded. She kind of got the hint that trying to talk to Puck right now would be the equivalent of going unarmed into enemy territory and hoping to not be killed. Actually that would be pretty much exactly what trying to apologize to him right now would be. She sighed.

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking, how did you find out?" Bobbi asked, quietly.

"I got a call from Barton bitching about how his 'future junior officer wanted to quit because of the Hell Beast and her bff, the Stepford Bitch'. I figured that warranted an investigation."

Sharon rolled her eyes knowing Bobbi was doing the same. Sometimes she really hated Clint Barton. That would all the days that ended with the letter y.

"Who even called him?"

"Stark," Nick replied. "The same person who got Steve involved. I hope that you realize that Tony Stark hacks any and everything pertaining to those teenagers."

"Got that now."

"And you would both do well to remember that I am the sole determinate of who is and who isn't considered to be SHIELD material. Every agent that comes through the academy has been vetted by myself and Deputy Hill. Both Lopez and Puckerman came with the recommendations of two highly respected agents, our consultant, and Captain America. That alone makes him SHIELD material. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir," Sharon murmured. "I apologize. I was out of line."

"I'm not the one that you have to apologize to. But I would definitely wait until he's alone. Good luck with that though. Because that kid is rarely ever alone. Now if you'll excuse me. I hear Barton is cooking dinner tonight and I'm going to secure an invitation for myself."

With that, Nick pushed past the two women and into the room. Sharon watched as Nick gently teased both teenagers with the gruff affection he only showed to Clint through the years. Sharon shook her head. She really, really screwed this one up. But she wasn't going to make it a habit. She was going to get off her high horse and find a way to make it up to Puck. There had to be a reason they were crossing paths after so long. Maybe it was time they became more than just family on paper.

Despite herself she smiled softly. Now with the addition of Puck, that made three agents that were either directly or indirectly related to Agent Peggy Carter in SHIELD. She knew Trip was a great agent already and Puck was well on his way. Yeah, the legacy of Peggy Carter was definitely in good hands.


	11. Ice Ice Baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which more plot happens, Donnie learns the true meaning of friendship, Clint learns some of the truth and this story is living up to it's family thing title.

It took a lot to get Clint Barton angry. Given the utter and complete train wreck that was his life before Phil and Nick, he knew people were surprised that he wasn't a walking, talking angst bomb waiting to explode in front of whoever was stupid enough to talk to him. Maybe he should be but… he wasn't. He learned that if he let the damage show then people treated him with kid gloves. They treated him like he was fragile and he really wasn't. But that didn't stop people from acting differently around him as soon as they heard the words child abuse and orphan. So he learned to be more emotionally distant. He learned to hide behind nonchalance and sarcasm. He had emotional walls so strong he thought they would never be breached. Then, of course, Nick and Phil showed up and shot that theory to hell.

Those two didn't just give him a job. They gave him a home and a family. If Phil was like a father, mother and brother in one person, then Nick was like the fun uncle that gave him extra cookies for dessert and found loopholes when he was grounded. So yeah, they crashed through his defenses and set up camp. They gave him a reason to get up in the morning. They also gave him something to care about. Something to get angry about. Even still, it was hard to anger him. Nick and Phil were beyond capable of taking care of themselves. They had been doing it since before he was even born. So the few threats that popped up through the years never really registered to him. Even with the whole Loki thing, Clint wasn't really angry (except at himself) but he was now.

"What the hell is TAHITI?!" Clint seethed as he read through the files Tony generously procured for him. He saw the billionaire flinch at the level of venom he heard but Clint was beyond caring. Because from what he was understanding about what he was reading, one of three most important people in his life was lying to him. And he had a sinking feeling that it was more than just the one. God, he hoped Natasha didn't have something to do with this.

"It's a top secret project. It's encrypted to hell. It's even beyond Level 10 clearance," Tony replied, watching Clint with concern in his eyes. "I have JARVIS working on it but it's going to take some time. Whatever this Project TAHITI is, it has something to do with why Agent is walking around today."

"It also has something to do with this Clairvoyant that's harassing Phil and his team," Clint mumbled, staring hard at the screen as if the words would tell him something more. But that was all they could find. Phil's return from the dead had something to do with this Project TAHITI and someone calling themselves the Clairvoyant was interested in whatever the project was as well. Yet no one was telling Clint anything. He had a feeling that if he wasn't actively hacking the files he wouldn't even know this much. He probably wasn't even supposed to know about this at all.

At first he was willing to accept that Phil was alive again and just be happy with that. But over time, the feeling that something wasn't quite right settled in heavily. Phil was still the same. Nothing was wrong with him personality wise. But it was his interactions with Nick and even Melinda that caused Clint to become concerned. Clint was one of the few people that knew just how damaged Melinda May was following her last field mission. He knew the woman before and after that mission. So the fact that she was volunteering to return to the field was suspect. When he had a chance to talk to her following her decision to join Phil's team, she only said that she wanted to keep an eye on Phil following his return from the dead. He knew they were close. If he was a braver man (or a dumber one) he would even start referring to her as his stepmother. But he wasn't and he didn't. Melinda returning to the field to work on Phil's team didn't seem wrong on paper but it sparked something in Clint's gut that he couldn't let go.

"She wanted to keep an eye on him," he murmured. He felt more than saw Tony's gaze focused on him. "Something Melinda told me a few weeks ago. She said that she wanted to keep an eye on him because he was back from the dead. But that's not what she told Phil. She acted like she didn't want to go back when Phil first tapped her. But she told me she was keeping an eye on him. What if that's exactly what she was doing. She's keeping an eye on him."

"Isn't that what Spider Chick does with you?"

Clint snorted faintly. "Yeah, but it's different. Melinda and Phil hardly ever work together despite the fact that they're like me and Nat times twenty. They tend to work apart and collaborate when needed. But Melinda put herself back in the field after her last mission went majorly FUBAR. Not to mention, Fury didn't even consider putting me or Nat on this team."

"Maybe he thought you were better off with the Avengers," Tony pointed out.

"I'm sure that was part of it. But he separated me and Phil. There's something here that I'm not seeing. I feel like I'm right there but there's a piece of the puzzle missing. And it has everything to do with TAHITI."

"Well, give JARVIS a few days and we'll know everything there is to know about TAHITI," Tony assured him, crossing his arms over his chest. "Don't worry, kid. You said it yourself, Agent seems okay. He's not foaming at the mouth or sacrificing babies to a dark lord. So I think he's okay. And he and his team are on this Clairvoyant."

"Forgive me for being concerned about his so called team. Aside from Melinda and I guess Ward, he has a couple of science geeks who have never been out in the field before now and a civilian hacker that was spying on them up until a few weeks ago."

"Clint, you know if you wanted to join Phil's team, none of us would be upset."

Clint nodded. "I do know that and thanks. I'm okay here. I just can't help but think that something big is going to happen. And it has everything to do with Phil." He sighed and slumped back in his seat. "Maybe I'm just catching Blaine's paranoia."

"Oh," Tony chuckled. "He's still on that thing with Brittany?"

"Yeah. He's convinced that Brittany knows some huge secret about them. So maybe I'm just catching his paranoia."

"Maybe," Tony conceded. "Or maybe there is something weird going on and you're right for being concerned. It's SHIELD, kid. Secrets are their specialty. Pretty sure Fury's secrets have secrets that have secrets of their own."

Clint refrained from acknowledging that statement. Mostly because it was so very, very true. Nick did in fact hide a lot of secrets. But as a Level 10 agent, Clint had access to most of those secrets. If he wanted to know, he only had to look it up. But not this. TAHITI was above his clearance level for some reason. If that wasn't a red flag, he didn't want to know what would be. For some reason he was being left out of the loop. He sighed, still looking at the screen.

"What are you hiding, Nick?" he murmured under his breath. Tony patted him on the knee but didn't say anything further.

"Sir, I apologize for the interruption but there is a situation brewing in the lobby."

Tony and Clint exchanged worried looks even as Tony ordered the AI to bring up the security cameras from the lobby. Clint knew he wasn't alone in being concerned about what the AI deemed a situation. JARVIS usually handled things without the Avengers needing to be involved. So if he was contacting Tony, then it was something serious. Or it was just…

"Annette," Tony growled, staring at his ex who was currently in the process of berating the poor receptionist. "JARVIS, please let Rhonda know that she can send Mrs. Anderson and her husband up. I'll meet with them on the common floor. Also please inform Blaine and Cooper that their mother is here."

"They are aware, sir. They are en route to the common floor along with Sam."

Tony raked a hand over his face before turning to Clint with apologies already forming. Clint held up a hand and smiled. "Dude, go handle your family business. I think it's time I handled mine. Nick and Phil are hiding something from me and it's about time that I finally confronted them about it."

"You need backup?"

"I think I'm okay," Clint admitted with a grateful nod. "Besides, pretty sure you're going to have your hands full with Blaine's mom and Step-Stan."

"Ugh," Tony rolled his eyes skyward for a moment before taking a deep breath. "Just when things were finally settling down."

Clint nodded sympathetically. Things actually were pretty settled aside from his conspiracy theories. It was officially eight months since they made the move into the Tower and five since Puck and Santana entered the Academy. After the initial rough patches, both Santana and Puck transitioned into the life of a SHIELD cadet smoothly. Even Sam and Blaine were having an easier time at school. Things were okay. And now Annette and Stan Anderson were here to throw another curveball.

The archer dutifully followed Tony down to the inevitable confrontation. They stepped off the private elevator just as the elevator carrying the intruders arrived on their floor. Cooper and Blaine were standing together glaring daggers at their mother and stepfather. Clint spotted Sam standing on the fringes of the family reunion chewing on his lip anxiously.

"What do you want, Annette? Didn't you get your check this month?" Tony snapped, not even attempting to play nice with his ex this time. Good for him.

"Actually, I didn't," Annette retorted. "I thought we had a deal, Tony!"

"Wait, what deal?" Blaine cut in, looking at his father in confusion.

Tony rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I might have been paying your mother a monthly stipend to leave you alone." Blaine's jaw dropped and Sam and Clint both tensed waiting for the fallout.

"You've been paying mom to stay out of my life?!" Tony gave a small nod. Blaine whirled around to face his mother. "And you accepted the money?! You really don't give a damn about me, do you?"

"Of course I care about you, Blaine. Despite what your father has told you, I love you unconditionally."

"Dad actually hasn't mentioned you at all," Cooper chimed in with a smirk. "We pretty much inferred that you don't care by the fact that you accepted Dad's bribe to stay away. And I wondered why we haven't heard from you in eight months."

"Until you didn't get your check," Blaine said bitterly. "Stay classy, mom."

"I don't understand," Tony murmured, already flicking through his tablet. Clearly he was of the belief that if he just found the missing check his ex would go away. Based on what Clint has seen from the Stark boys' mother, Tony was probably right. "I sent the request through payroll on the first. You should've gotten it by now. I wonder what went wrong."

"I did," a new voice chimed into the escalating madness. All eyes were on Pepper as she strolled into the room with a small smirk on her face. "Hello Annette, Stanley."

"What do you mean? What happened to my check?" Annette asked by way of greeting.

"I mean that it is no longer necessary for Tony to be giving you child support for a child you have never actually supported. I have waited four years to have him living under our roof and no longer see the need to pay for you to fly around the world."

"How dare you?! He's my son!"

"He's not a possession, Annette. He's a kid. A kid you've been paid to neglect for the last time! I'm officially cutting you off."

"You stupid ginger…"

"Hey!" Tony, Cooper and Blaine protested in unison. But Pepper brushed it off with a casual wave of her hand. If anything she seemed almost amused by the fact that she pushed the other woman to insults this quickly.

"This isn't over, Pepper," Annette retorted nastily. "You're not going to turn my family against me. You really think that they'll choose a secretary over me?"

Pepper's eyes narrowed. "I was a personal assistant! And you do remember that part of my job was to take the trash out in the mornings. I seem to recall that I had to escort you out several mornings. Even after you got married."

"You were still sleeping with him?!"

Clint whistled quietly. "So this is the part where we leave."

"Oh, yeah," Sam muttered. With that said, the two scurried onto the elevator and as far away from that awkward scene as humanly possible. "This is probably not going to blow over anytime soon, is it?"

"Nope. You might wanna find somewhere else to crash tonight," Clint suggested. He glanced at the clock in the elevator. "You want a ride over to the Academy?"

"You don't mind?"

"Course not," Clint elbowed the teen, pulling a laugh from the blonde. "I'm going that way anyway. It's time I got to the bottom of this whole my kind of dad was dead and now he's not thing."

"You need backup?"

"Nah, I'm good, kid. Just text Puck and give him a heads up that we're on our way."

"Okay. And thanks Uncle Clint."

"No problem, Fire Bird."

Clint snickered even as Sam sucked his teeth. "Not you too! It's bad enough that Brittany has got Thor calling me that!"

"It's a catchy nickname. Although it is kind of weird that she calls you that and starts giggling about foreshadowing."

Sam rolled his eyes. "Don't start!" he warned. "Blaine is convinced that there is some kind of conspiracy going on. He doesn't need any more encouragement."

"It's Blaine. Pretty sure he actually doesn't need anyone to encourage him. He's good on his own. He is a Stark after all."

"Very true," Sam commented as he followed Clint into the garage. "Which car are we taking?"

Clint paused in the doorway of the garage. That was an excellent question. Tony had a collection of cars. Most of them were safe for use by people that were in fact not Tony Stark. Then there were a precious few that were specifically banned for use by people not named Tony Stark. Clint grinned as he caught sight of the brand new Audi Tony purchased shortly after the move into the Tower. He walked over to the wall where all the car keys were stored.

"He's going to kill you," Sam laughed.

"Serves him right for trying to adopt me. Again."

"He's still on that?"

"He's rich. He's never going to stop until he gets his way. And he will continue despite the fact that it is actually not legally possible to adopt someone as your sibling much less a twenty eight year old man. Eventually he's going to meet someone who will give him his way if only to shut him up. Then I'm going to be Clint Stark."

"You secretly love it, don't you?" Sam asked even as he climbed in the passenger seat. Clint snorted and started up the car.

"Shut up, Fire Bird."

"Stop calling me that!"  
_____________________________________________  
Puck would look back on that day and wonder how a day that started off so normally would actually be the harbinger for all the crazy. Truthfully, he was able to see that things were actually in motion before that random Tuesday morning. But the truth remained that everything started coming to a head that morning. And it was such an ordinary day too. He and Donnie woke up, bantered, ate breakfast and went their separate ways to class. They were scheduled to meet up for lunch with Santana and his cousins, but Donnie skipped out saying that something had come up. After several months of living with the guy, Puck was becoming all too familiar with what Donnie really meant when he talked. Something coming up was code for 'I'm working on something and can't be bothered with socializing'. Puck didn't fight him on it. He knew that Donnie struggled with coming out of his shell around other people. The fact that he felt even semi comfortable around Puck (and all the random associated people that seemed to surround Puck) was enough for him. Still he couldn't help but be mildly concerned for his slightly older friend.

Donnie had been in the Academy for a full month prior to Santana and Puck enrolling and was somehow even less settled than them. Puck really thought that being young and smart would've been something that was actively encouraged within the Sciences and Technology division seeing as most of them were barely out of their teen years. But somehow Donnie was too extreme of an outlier for them and he had zero friends to show for it. Well, that wasn't entirely true. There was that kid, Seth Dormer. For some reason, he was incredibly popular (Puck was less than impressed with him) and yet he seemed to enjoy spending time around Donnie. But something seemed off about that relationship. Puck was especially concerned about the amount of time they spent together following Seth's transfer from the Operations Division to the Science and Technology department three months ago.

"Hey, Trip?" Puck waited until the man opposite from him looked up from the file he was reading during their scheduled lunch. He knew from experience it didn't pay to tell Antoine 'Trip' Triplett anything unless you had his full and completely undivided attention. "Do you know anything about Seth Dormer?"

Trip leaned back in his seat, chewing on his lip absently as he thought. It was just the two of them at the moment. Sharon was supervising the Science and Technology cadets in some lecture from someone named Fitzsimmons (he totally tuned out after a while) and Santana was sneaking in some quality mentor time with Natasha, who was finally back from her latest mission. So lunch was just going to be the males of the Carter Trio as most of the gossip hungry cadets had taken to calling them. Puck admitted he was hesitant to accept the obvious olive branch that Sharon extended to him but having Trip around definitely helped. He smoothed the rough edges between both of his step cousins and Puck could safely say that he looked forward to his Tuesday lunches with Sharon nowadays. It was a definite upgrade from the full blown panic attacks and terror he used to experience before these little get-togethers.

"Oh, yeah, Dormer, he's another Legacy cadet," Trip finally replied. "His grandfather was a pretty big deal around here back in the day. Last I heard he was working directly under Secretary Pierce these days. None of his kids joined up. But then his grandkid, Seth, popped up shouting his granddaddy's name from the mountaintops. I haven't met him but everything I've heard tells me that's a good thing."

"You have no idea," Puck agreed, snorting lightly. "Everyone around us loves him but there's something about him that… just doesn't seem right. Even Santana doesn't hate him and she hates everyone. She just looks down on him a little."

"Trust your instincts, kid," Trip said, seriously. "I've heard more than enough stories from my Grandpa and Uncle Dugan to know that your great grandparents had excellent instincts when it came to reading people and situations. So trust them. If you think something is off about Seth, then go with that feeling."

"Thanks," Puck mumbled. He cleared his throat looking for a suitable distraction. Finally, he nodded towards the file Trip was reading. "Work? Personal?"

"A little of both actually," Trip admitted. "Remember when you got kidnapped?" Puck nodded. "Clint, Steve and Natasha were supposed to be checking out the rumors of HYDRA resurfacing but they made the wise choice of rescuing you instead. Garrett and I got called out and we investigated and found nothing. But I'm not sure there really wasn't anything there."

"You think maybe you just missed them?"

"No," Trip frowned. "I think maybe something was actually there for us to find but someone didn't want me to see it."

Puck narrowed his eyes. "Someone like…?"

"I don't even know, kid," Trip shook his head, his fingers tapping on the file. "I just get the feeling that Garrett isn't telling me everything he should be telling me."

Puck arched an eyebrow but refrained from adding anything further to the conversation. He noticed early on that despite the fact that Garrett and Coulson met their respective junior officers at around the same time and at practically the same age, there was a very different dynamic between them. From everything he heard, both Ward and Clint had a huge case of hero worship for their illustrious SOs but the difference was that it seemed to be a mutual connection between Phil and Clint. From everything Trip told Puck about Garrett, he didn't exactly seem like the type that would buy his junior officer books to encourage him to talk or teach him how to cook in order to unwind in a healthy way. Nothing Trip said made John Garrett seem even remotely warm or paternal. That was a vibe Puck picked up from Coulson within a minute of meeting him.

"Trust your instincts, cuz," Puck said after a moment. "And just know that if you ever need an out, you have several. All you need to do is ask."

Trip met his gaze and nodded. He tapped his fingers against the file in front of him once again before finally closing it and pushing it slightly away. "So why were you asking about Dormer anyway?"

"He's been spending a lot of time around Donnie lately. I don't know. Donnie's not the kind of guy that someone like Seth wants to be friends with. Donnie is the kind of guy that someone like Seth wants to use."

"You had this talk with Donnie?"

"No," Puck admitted reluctantly. "I don't want him to think I'm jealous of Seth."

"Are you?"

"No! Okay, well, maybe a little. I don't know," Puck mumbled, slumping against the table. He felt Trip stretch across the table to ruffle his hair and glared upward at his cousin. Trip's blinding white grin was the only response he received. Jerk. "Anyway, the reason I've been thinking about it is because last night there was an incident at the pool."

"The ice machine?" Trip supplied. Puck nodded. "That's right, Dormer was the kid involved. And Donnie was the one that saved him?"

"Yeah. But instead of acknowledging that they were friends, Seth acted like they barely knew each other. And Donnie let him. I have this feeling that something isn't right. And I have no idea what to do about that."

"Don't stress it. Talk to Donnie and let him know how you're feeling. He just needs to know that he has friends that don't want to use him. I'm sure everything will be alright."

Hindsight taught him that those words should be forever banished from their vocabularies. Because they almost always preceded an event where actually nothing was alright. Case in point, no sooner had those words left Trip's mouth was Puck's phone ringing. His brow furrowed seeing that it was Sharon. She was supposed to be in the lecture still. A cold feeling settled in his stomach. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

"Share? What's going on?"

"Noah, get over to the Infirmary. Now."

"What happened?"

"It's Donnie."

She hung up soon after that but Puck didn't care. He was already out of his seat and racing through the halls, ignoring Trip's confused yells in the process. Nothing mattered at that moment except getting to Donnie and making sure the genius was alive. And then he was going to kill him for making him worried in the first place.

When he got there, the whole room was practically buzzing with people. He recognized Sharon standing to the sidelines of the madness and eased his way to her side. She gave him a wan look before pointing at the center of the circus. Donnie was sitting on one of the hospital beds with several blankets covering his pale form. Puck could see that he was still shivering and there was a faint blueness on his lips.

"Donnie?" he asked, pushing through a man wearing a suit and a young woman not that much older than him so that he could stand by his friend's side. His roommate looked up with a grateful smile. "What the hell happened? I leave you alone for five minutes."

"More like thirty," Donnie managed to get out around his chattering teeth. Puck grinned. "I got… go… got frozen."

"Like with the thing with Seth last night?" Donnie nodded. Puck frowned. "You were back at the pool?"

"No, I was at the lecture with Agents Simmons and Fitz."

"Oh yeah, the nerd thing that Sharon dumped me for too," Puck muttered. Donnie shook his head with a small smile forming on his not so blue anymore lips. Puck noticed that the shivering was slowing down as well. Good. "When are you getting out of here? I might need some time to figure out how to get our door to play Ice Ice Baby every time the door opens."

"You wouldn't," Donnie ground out.

"Oh, I think you'll find that I would," Puck nodded with a smug grin. "I totally would. And I would get Clint or Uncle Tony to help me do it if I couldn't do it my own."

"I would have to room with the dude that hangs out with Hawkeye and calls Tony Stark Uncle."

"Tony Stark is your uncle?!" the young woman he pushed past earlier blurted before slapping her hands over her mouth. The man still standing beside her rolled his eyes with the same fond exasperation that Pepper frequently displayed around Tony.

"Yeah, he's really good friends with my grandfather," Puck shrugged. The woman looked like she wanted to say something but her friend seemed to have reached a moment of enlightenment and cut her off.

"You're Puckerman," he said, pointing at Puck with a smirk. "So you're Barton's pet that he won't shut up about."

Puck's initial instinct was to punch him. But then his common sense and logic kicked in and reminded him that hitting a senior officer would be bad. He also realized in that moment exactly who was standing in front of him. A smirk tugged at his lips. So this was the infamous Grant Ward. He took in the chiseled good looks, smug know-it-all demeanor and dark, unreadable eyes and nodded to his own silent conclusion. Yeah, the guy was a douche. His smirk grew wider as he glanced at something just over the man's shoulder.

"Yes, I'm Noah Puckerman, Clint Barton's future junior officer. Have you met my partner? She's been handpicked by the Black Widow."

Ward arched an eyebrow, clearly wondering where this was going when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He whirled around with a wide eyes to face a grinning Santana. She cocked her head to the side and held out her right hand. Ward moved to shake it when he noticed the rather large knife in the palm of her hand. Santana shrugged and moved the knife to her other hand.

"Santana Lopez," she said, voice dripping with sweetness. "You must be Grant Ward. I've heard so much about you."

"So much," Puck added. "So, so much."

"Smooth, Ward," his companion muttered sarcastically, patting him on the shoulder. "Are Fitzsimmons the only science people you can talk to without completely alienating them in five minutes or less?"

"We're not in this division," Puck corrected.

"They're in Operations," Sharon chimed in, stepping up to Puck's free side. "Grant, I know Clint can be, putting it very delicately, a huge pain in the ass, but you would do well to remember that Noah is much more than just Clint's 'pet'. He's also my cousin. And you do remember what happened the last time that you offended one of my cousins, right?"

Ward winced and Puck was reminded (not for the first time) that his cousin was a total badass. He was really starting to enjoy this family thing.

"Well, since he's not going to introduce me, I will. Hi, I'm Skye."

"No last name? How very Madonna of you," Santana grinned.

"She means that in a good way," Puck assured Skye. "We were in a glee club in high school. We sang a lot of Madonna."

"A frightening amount of Madonna," Santana agreed. "So Skye, you're the hacktivist turned new recruit?"

"How did you….?"

"Tony hacks Phil's files," Puck and Santana chorused together. Donnie snickered in the background. "And if Tony doesn't then Clint does."

"I really need to put better security around those files," Skye muttered.

"Good luck with protecting anything from those two," Santana shook her head. "There isn't a system created that JARVIS can't hack. Also never underestimate Clint when it comes to Phil Coulson. I thought Blaine had anxiety when his dad came back from the dead but he has nothing on Clint."

"Wait, Coulson has a kid?"

"No, Coulson does not have a kid," Ward retorted.

"Coulson has a kid," Sharon, Santana and Puck said together.

"Agent Barton may not be Agent Coulson's biological child but that's about the only thing that's keeping them from being father and son," the nurse chimed in. "Any and all medical procedures have to be run by both of them. Agent Barton may come across as a nuisance to many but he's just looking out for Agent Coulson. Now Coulson, he's the real problem. Especially when it comes to Agent Barton. He can be a bit overprotective. And he's not the only one," she added throwing Puck an amused look.

"What? I have to look out for him. He's my future senior officer. I need the idiot to stay alive long enough to actually teach me something!"

"Right, like that's the only reason," the nurse scoffed. She checked Donnie's temperature and vitals one more time. "Well, you're still slightly hypothermic. But I'm not going to keep you. I can see that you've got more than enough people to look after you tonight. If there are any changes, or if you're not feeling any better, you come right back here. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," Donnie mumbled. He tightened his grasp on the blanket and allowed Santana and Puck to ease him off the stretcher. He swayed slightly and Puck wrapped an arm around his waist to steady him. Donnie gave him a grateful nod.

"Wait, where are you going? We weren't done talking," Ward protested.

"You weren't?" Puck asked innocently, continuing to maneuver Donnie towards the door. Santana was on his other side, ready to lend a hand if needed. "It's cool. He'll be in our room. Once you find the asshole that tried to literally ice my roommate, you can let us know."

"But," Ward started but was ignored as they shuffled out the door. Puck could feel his eyes trained on his back as they left but the man wisely stayed shut.

"I don't like that guy," Puck murmured as soon as they were completely out of earshot. That of course meant once they were all the way by their room. He lived with Clint and Natasha. He knew there wasn't much either of them missed. "I'm getting some serious Gaston vibes."

"Gaston?" Donnie questioned even as he shrugged on an extra hoodie. He plopped down on his bed, pulling the comforter up around his legs.

"Deranged egomaniacal jerk hidden by a pretty face," Santana translated even as she was reading something on her phone.

Donnie shook his head. "Your mind is a terrifying place, Puck. And it's really bad knowing that Santana can actually understand you."

Santana glanced up with a smirk. Then she turned to Puck. "Heads up, Sammy said he's crashing here tonight. Apparently Blaine's mom and stepdad are here because Pepper cut off their spending money. He's pretty sure World War III is about to break out. He and Clint split and are on their way here. Apparently Clint has a bone to pick with his dads."

"Oh great, the Blonde Wonder is coming. That's the perfect end to my already crappy day!" Donnie muttered from where he was huddled under even more blankets. Puck only smiled at Donnie's grumbling. He knew that Donnie didn't mean them as insults. "Tell him to bring us the pho from the Vietnamese place down the street from the Tower. If we're providing room, the least he can do is feed us."

Santana sent the desired message and snickered as Sam replied back less than a minute. "Sammy says, 'tell Donnie, he knows exactly where he can shove his pho.'" She paused as her phone chimed. "He then asked, 'chicken or beef?'."

"Chicken," Donnie answered.

Puck shook his head. Donnie and Sam had an amusing relationship. They took one look at one another and developed an instant love/hate friendship. Puck didn't stress it because there was an obvious affection underneath the barrage of insults and good natured taunts. It was probably because they were on opposite sides of the personality spectrum. Donnie came across as cold at first. He often held back, not because he didn't like people but simply because he was isolated as a child that he didn't really know how to fit in or even how to try. Sam, on the other hand, was like a hyperactive puppy. He was all warm hugs and open affection. It was precisely because of those personality differences that they had taken to comparing the two to fire and ice.

Brittany really enjoyed giggling about that for some reason. Puck was determined not to give it too much thought. It was Brittany. He was used to the random and sometimes off the wall comments she made. Although… lately, he got the feeling that maybe she wasn't as random as he thought. Because he was the great grandson of the world's first Avenger. His official residence was also home to all manner of genetically enhanced super people. So when Brittany made comments about waiting for years for them and foreshadowing, he was less inclined to dismiss it these days. Because there was definitely something going on here. But it was anyone's guess as to what the hell that was.  
_____________________________________________  
Skye turned up the music in her headphones as she tried to ignore the ongoing bickering behind her. Ward was trying to convince Fitz that he needed to make nice with the latest victim of the insane ice wars going on around the Academy. He was convinced after interviewing some of the other students that Donnie had something to do with the ice that was plaguing the campus. Skye agreed with him as well. Donnie was definitely involved. She just didn't know how. Ward, on the other hand, believed that he knew exactly what was happening.

"Clearly Puckerman is influencing him. He all but yanked Donnie right out of the room while I was interviewing him," Ward's voice cut through her thoughts. She rolled her eyes and focused on the screen in front of her.

Ward very strongly (maybe a little too strongly to be sane) felt that Puck was somehow involved in this. Skye had her doubts about that one. She read through the kid's file, the one that Coulson made because his training file said nothing other than he was a mode agent. He has high scores in pretty much everything. Phil had all the good stuff in his files. Probably because he actually knew the kid. But the point was, she hacked his files. Clint wasn't the only one who could invade Phil's privacy and hack into things people other than Phil really had no business looking into… and that didn't sound right at all. But anyway, going by his life before he joined the SHIELD Academy, she might have been inclined to believe that he was exactly the type to manipulate some poor science geek into building some sort of doomsday weapon. But she was in the room when Puck showed up to help his roommate. There was concern there. He was genuinely worried about Donnie.

Then there was also the fact that he apparently was close enough to refer to Tony Stark as his uncle. His permanent address was the newly minted Avengers Tower. And according to all the gossip Puckerman was the great grandson of Steve Rogers and best friends with the Stark heir apparent. So he definitely didn't need to manipulate anyone into doing anything. All he needed to do was ask and people were likely tripping over themselves to give him what he wanted. So that begged the question of who was really pulling the strings here. Everything she read about Puck led her to believe that it wasn't going to be easy getting anything from him. Neither Puck nor his future partner, Santana, appeared to have a good relationship with authority figures. The irony of them being SHIELD agents would keep her amused for weeks. They needed to figure out a way to get Puck or Donnie to talk. And preferably not together. Donnie might have some kind of connection to whoever made the machine but there was another player in this and it wasn't Puck. But first things first…

"Enough!" she yelled, slamming her hand on the table beside her laptop. The three agents jumped before looking at her in shock. "You're acting like children. Look, Ward has a point. It's kind of obvious that Donnie has something to do with this and he has a serious case of hero worship for you, Fitz. It might help if you were able to talk to him. See if you can figure out why he's being targeted or even if he built the stupid thing." She then looked to Ward. "But you're wrong too. Puckerman has nothing to do with this."

"And you know that how?" Ward asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Instinct," she retorted. "He was genuinely concerned about Donnie. I don't think he could fake that. He wasn't trying to get us away from him because he was scared Donnie was going to spill some terrible secret. Puck was trying to get us away because his roommate was just nearly frozen to death and, as far as he was concerned, some annoying douche in a suit was bothering the guy. Not to mention you were kind of being a jerk to Puck too."

Ward's lips twisted downward but he made no further argument. Even he had to see how bent out of shape he was getting over this. It seemed that anytime someone mentioned Clint Barton around Ward, his inner Mean Girl took over. But it wasn't just Ward. Clint Barton seemed to invoke strong reactions in everyone he met. The majority of the SHIELD agents she's interacted with through the few short months she was involved with the team seemed to believe that he was a loose cannon that didn't deserve his high level clearance within the agency though none of them spoke those concerns aloud for fear of retribution from Nick Fury himself.

That is where Skye got really tripped up. From everything she's heard and read about SHIELD's only archer, he should've been let go years ago. Yet Nick Fury vouched for him. Fury protected him. There was a moment a few weeks ago when the team was enjoying some rare downtime. The secure, only used for missions' phone line started ringing. May answered and Skye was treated with the rare sight of the Calvary smiling. It was almost a laugh. An almost laugh that was echoed by a real laugh from Phil when she handed the phone over to him with a fond eye roll. Skye didn't know why she was so annoyed in that moment. But she had been working with the team for almost a year and she never got May to smile. She never even got Phil to laugh that openly and freely. But SHIELD's resident loose cannon did. That didn't seem fair.

But she was not jealous despite what Jemma believed. She was not at all jealous of Clint Barton and his stupid ability to make May smile and Phil laugh and wind Ward up in ways she couldn't even imagine. Ugh, she really hated the guy and she didn't even know him.

But that was an issue for a later time. For now she was focused on this case. She had so much to prove to the rest of the team. She wanted this now. She wanted to be accepted by these people so badly. Coulson gave her a second chance and she wasn't going to let it go.

"So how do you suppose we should do this?"

"I thought you'd never ask," Skye beamed at him. She counted it as a win when she saw a reluctant smile forming on his lips. "Fitz and I are going to go talk to Donnie and Puck. I'm going to get Puck away from Donnie so Fitz can figure out what's really going on with him. I'm going to talk to Puck to see if he knows anything that we might not know. He's his roommate. He's bound to have noticed something."

"Not to mention he is the great grandchild of Agent Peggy Carter," Simmons chimed in. she frowned. "Bit disappointing that he's not a woman. Or British."

Skye opened her mouth to respond to that but found it was probably best to just let that one go. Instead she closed down her work and headed out with Fitz to try and separate the roommates. It went surprisingly easier than she thought it would.

Just as she was about to knock on the closed door, it opened revealing a slightly confused then annoyed looking Santana Lopez and Noah Puckerman. Puck rolled his eyes while Santana's hand strayed to the pocket Skye last saw her slipping her rather large knife into. That girl was seriously scary.

"What do you want?"

"Uh, I, uh we were hoping that, uh," Fitz stammered. Skye took a deep breath.

"Fitz here was just worried about Donnie. After all, he did help save his life," Skye answered smoothly. "He was hoping that he could spend a little time with him."

Puck narrowed his eyes. "And why are you here?"

Skye forced herself not to wilt under the glare being directed her way. Stand strong. Stand strong. "I'm here because you sized Ward up less than a minute after meeting him. That either means you know him or you know about him. And I would like to know what you know."

"So you want dirt on your boyfriend?"

"He's not my boyfriend! Who said he was my boyfriend? I'm not even interested in him like that," she rambled.

"I stand corrected," Puck said, chewing on his lip to hide a smile. He turned back to his roommate sitting up on the bed furthest from the door. "You up for a visitor while San and I go get Sammy?"

"Yeah, but hurry up. I don't want my soup getting cold."

Puck rolled his eyes muttering something about annoying geeks before stepping aside to let Fitz enter the room. He gave the pair one last look before walking away with Santana by his side. Skye took a deep breath and followed after them. Part one of the plan was on its way. She really hoped Fitz could pull this off because she doubted they were going to get another chance.  
_____________________________________________  
Nick still remembered the day that Phil brought Clint 'Hawkeye' Barton into his office for the first time. Even after a week of having a stable roof over his head and steady meals, the kid still looked underfed and like he hadn't slept in months. He was a sharp contrast to Garrett's pick, Ward, who cleaned up pretty much right away. He shed his months in juvie like a second skin and morphed into a model agent straight out the gate. Perhaps that's why Nick never really clicked as well with Grant Ward. Ward always seemed like he was playing a part while Clint was genuine. What you saw was pretty much what you got. Nick saw an annoying brat with more mouth than muscle and that's what he got… at first. But then gradually the brat grew on him. He saw that the mouth was a defense to protect what was left of a very battered heart and soul. The muscles developed slowly over time. Gradually, Clint became the agent that Phil swore he would be from the very beginning.

It was no secret that Nick had a rather obvious soft spot for Clint. Everyone knew about it. But that soft spot didn't mean that he went easy on the kid. No, he was just as hard, if not slightly harder, on Clint as he was on everyone else. But unlike the others, Clint never let it get to him. He accepted whatever task was thrown his way with humility and humbleness. Even the disaster that was the New Mexico assignment. Nick knew that Clint didn't want to be stuck watching the tesseract but he was the only agent that Nick could trust with something that important. He only wished the kid had thought to suggest that the damn thing was a doorway that could open on both sides before Loki came through. Really would've saved them all a lot of problems. The biggest of those problems being TAHITI. Well, TAHITI and the quietly seething archer sitting opposite from him.

"What the hell is TAHITI?" Clint asked. The question wasn't directed at Nick but rather Phil who was seated in the armchair beside Clint's. His handler only shrugged before directing his gaze to Nick. The director hid a wince as blue and green glared at him.

"I don't suppose either of you will just let it go, huh?"

"You suppose correctly," Clint retorted. "What is Project TAHITI and what does it have to do with Phil coming back from the dead? Because I know he was really dead. I read the files. He was pronounced dead at the scene. So how did you bring him back?"

Nick sighed, settling back in his chair. He had a decision to make in that moment. He could keep freezing them both out or tell them the truth. He thought he gave Phil enough to shut this whole line of questioning down but apparently he did not. Or rather he did not take into consideration that someone or something out there knew about Phil's resurrection and had questions. He also didn't take into consideration that Clint was smarter than anyone gave him credit for. Of course he was going to pick up on this and chase it down until he got his answers.

Clint was like a dog with a bone when it came to solving something. He wasn't going to let this go. The primary reason for holding on to the secret was sitting in the room anyway. Phil knew most of the story as it was thanks to the ongoing antics of the Clairvoyant. It was better to just tell them the truth now and deal with the fallout together. He laughed internally at the two men. They really were too damn much alike for his own good.

"Okay, I'll tell you."

"Tell us what?" Clint questioned warily.

"Everything. I'll tell you everything about Project TAHITI."

"Really?"

"Yes, really," Nick replied, only slightly annoyed. He did have a reputation for keeping things from the kid… the archer. He wasn't exactly a kid anymore.

"Okay," Clint said, nodding his head. "But first answer one question for me."

"Yeah?"

"Did Natasha know anything about what you're about to tell me?"

"No, I swear Natasha didn't know about this. If she did, I have no doubt she would've told you at some point. She doesn't keep secrets from you, Clint. I'm not even going to try and tell you to keep it from her either."

Clint glanced at Phil out the corner of his eye. Phil laughed quietly before nodding his head. "Okay, then. Tell us everything. What the hell is TAHITI?"

"TAHITI stands for Terrestrialized Alien Host Integrative Tissue I. Clint, I know you're more than familiar with the device now known as the Diviner. I filled Phil in shortly after you rescued Puck."

"You mean when Puck rescued himself and we gave him a ride?" Clint asked with a ghost of a smile. Nick took that as both apology for his earlier (and justified) attitude as well as acceptance of the peace offering Nick was giving them.

"Yeah, after he rescued himself and you all gave him a ride. Anyway the thing is the Diviner was not the only artifact that was retrieved that day. Agent Carter and the Commandos also retrieved what would ultimately become the basis for Project TAHITI. The desiccated remains of an alien that is rumored to be at least a thousand years old."

"Project TAHITI's source is an actual alien?!" Clint asked, brow furrowing.

"You said that the kids bore similar DNA markers to this source," Phil said slowly. "Are you trying to tell me that Santana, Puck and Sam have alien DNA?"

"Skye as well. She's the baby we discussed, Phil."

Phil looked shaken. "Skye… Puck, Sam and Santana are all…. You brought me back to life using alien DNA?!"

"Okay, I'm lost here. Aliens? We knew about aliens before Thor?" Clint asked, holding his hand up. "Also SHIELD found the Diviner with the alien corpse and that wasn't a neon glowing sign that they might be connected?"

Nick narrowed his eye at Clint. "Agent Carter took lead on trying to identify the artifacts but surprisingly HYDRA wasn't too eager to share their findings. Go figure." Clint shrugged. He really was a total brat.

"Can we please go back to where you brought me back using DNA harvested from an a thousand year alien corpse of unknown origins and species?!" Phil interjected, drawing Nick's attention. "Were there tests done before this? Are their side effects? Am I going to turn into a… whatever species you used?"

Nick frowned wondering just how much he should share. His gaze flickered between Phil and Clint and he got his answer. Everything. He needed to tell them everything.  
_____________________________________________  
Leo Fitz was a genius. Not that Donnie was ever in doubt of that fact. No, he knew that just as he knew the sun would rise in the morning. He was after all the youngest agent to come through the SHIELD Academy before Donnie himself enrolled. From the second he started with his classes, Donnie heard about the great Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons. They were the youngest until him. He had big shoes to fill. At first, he didn't let it bother him. He didn't care about trying to live up to someone else's standards. He was just happy to be away from his overprotective and totally smothering parents. But over time, his age and intelligence (yes, even at a place for smart people) made him almost alien. He was about to give up and go back home when life threw Noah Puckerman into his path.

Puck helped him. Puck dragged him out of their room and forced him to have social interactions. For the first time since he arrived at SHIELD, he felt almost happy. He felt like he belonged. But at the same time, he knew it was all fleeting. It all rested on the shoulders of Puck. If something happened and Puck wanted to leave Donnie behind, he didn't believe for a second that any of the people that were in his life now would stay without Puck there. No, he needed Puck. And wasn't that precisely what he wanted to avoid? He traded his almost parasitic relationship with his parents for one with Puck. He didn't want to hear it in the beginning. But the more he thought about it, the clearer it became. When they graduated from the Academy, Puck was likely going back to the Avenger Tower. He would probably be added as full time member. He was going to be a superhero and Donnie was going to be a lab rat. That's why he was doing this. He had to.

"I can't believe you figured that out so quickly," Donnie murmured, slightly out of awe and his own personal frustration at needing someone else to figure out his problem. Fitz smiled faintly blushing at the praise.

"Yeah, well, it's just a suggestion. But it's a good design. You might want to check with the higher ups before you try implementing those designs but it's a solid concept."

Donnie found himself smiling now. "That's high praise coming from the Leo Fitz."

"I'm the Leo Fitz?"

"Yeah, smartest and youngest agent to come through the Academy."

Fitz smiled a little bigger. "Well, in her defense, Simmons may actually be smarter than I am but that's only because she loves homework more than life itself. It's just not natural."

Donnie felt a pang of loneliness. He recognized that tone. That's how Santana and Puck spoke about one another. It's how they talked about Sam, Blaine and Brittany. They all knew each other inside and out. They knew each other's flaws and quirks and were amused by them. He would give anything to have something like that.

"Must be nice. To have someone to talk to like that," Donnie disclosed without thinking. "Or just talk to at all."

"Kind of rough living with someone from Operations?"

"Not at all actually," Donnie admitted. "Puck is… he doesn't always understand what I'm saying but he listens. And sometimes he asks questions. He tries to understand what I'm telling him when I slip into science talk. And he does get it more often than not. He's smarter than he gives himself credit for."

"It's a bit strange, isn't it? An Operations agent being friends with Science and Technology cadet."

"I guess," Donnie shrugged, toying with the edge of the plans still spread out on the table. "But Puck is all about being a bit strange."

He glanced over at his roommate's side of the room. Three months ago it was practically bare. But now there were action figures lining IKEA shelves. The shelves were slightly crooked and the result of entirely too much goofing off from Sam, Puck and Blaine. Donnie smiled remembering how Santana wisely dragged him out of the midst of their chaos. Alongside the shelves were pictures of Puck's friends and family. There were pictures from the glee club they left behind in Ohio. There were also some of the Avengers. There was a group picture of Puck with his cousins and great grandfather. One of him with Santana, Sam, Blaine and Brittany. One of him with Donnie. One of….

Donnie moved across the room to stand in front of the picture. He never noticed it before. It wasn't a recent one either. It was taken that night Donnie first met the Avengers. He didn't even know they took a picture that night much less that Puck kept it and put it up on his wall. Puck really did care about him. He was his friend. He was drawn out of his thoughts by a knock outside. The door pushed open slightly and Seth Dormer's head of shaggy hair appeared. He gave a wide smile of surprise to find Fitz in the room.

"I'm sorry, Donnie. I didn't know you had company. I just wanted to check on you. See how you were feeling. But I can come back later."

"No, it's fine," Fitz said, brushing his hand against his shirt. "You two catch up. I should go meet up with the rest of the team. Donnie, I'll try and meet up with you before we leave."

"I'd like that," Donnie replied. Fitz gave him one last smile before easing past Seth. Donnie didn't need to look to know that the older man was smirking.

"Did it work?" he asked, closing the door behind him. "Did he help you fix it?"

"Yeah," Donnie sighed. "It was just like you figured. He helped me and didn't even really think about me. I'm pretty sure they all think that Puck is like the mastermind behind this."

Seth laughed. "Are you kidding me?! That's awesome! While they're off chasing after Puckerman, we'll sell this baby to Quinn and be billionaires. We'll be richer than Tony Stark."

Donnie closed his eyes at the mention of Tony Stark. Puck's self-appointed uncle. The man that let a total stranger spend the weekend at his home. Donnie opened his eyes to look down at the plans. The plans for the ice machine that would make them both a lot of money. He knew the plan would work to lure Fitzsimmons here. He knew that freezing himself would definitely remove any and all suspicion from himself. But what he didn't count on was the guilt that would gnaw at him now that everything was said and done.

"I don't think I can do this," Donnie admitted. "It's wrong. Puck has nothing to do with this and they're going to blame him."

"I'm sure SHIELD's Golden Boy can take the hit," Seth scoffed. "He'll be fine. Did you forget what we talked about already? Do you really want to be some no name lab tech while guys like Puck get all the recognition and fame? Is that what you really want?"

"No, but I just don't think that this is the way to go about it, that's all."

"So you're going to back out now when we're so close to everything we've both always wanted? You're going to go back to being Donnie No Name living in the shadow of one of the Carter Trio?"

"No," Donnie protested. "I just… don't… I don't think that…."

Seth stepped closer into Donnie's space. "You do not want to cross me, Gill. Remember Puckerman is not the only one with family in high places. And my family goes higher than his. My grandfather works with Secretary Pierce. I can and I will make both your life and the life of that pain in the ass Puck a living hell if you try and back out now. So what's it going to be Donnie? You going to have a change of heart and damn your precious friend? Or are you going to man up and make more money than we can spend in our lifetimes?"

Donnie was spared having to make an answer as the door to his room opened once again. This time it was Puck who was loudly singing Ice Ice Baby while carrying what could only be his requested chicken pho. Puck stopped singing, reading the tension between the two men.

"Is there a problem here?" he asked, eyes darting between Donnie and Seth before finally settling on Donnie.

"No," Donnie replied. "Everything is okay. Seth was just leaving. Right, Seth?"

Seth's lips ticked downward before sighing. "I really didn't want to have to do this, Donnie. I thought we could be civilized. This is the opposite of civilized."

"What the hell are you talking…?" Puck trailed off as Seth whirled around producing what initially looked like a gun. Donnie barely had enough time to even yell Puck's name in warning before Seth pulled the trigger. Four lines emerged and attached themselves to Puck's skin. The younger teen cried out before crashing to the ground in convulsions. His back arched as the electricity coursed through his body. But Seth didn't pull back.

"Seth, stop!"

"You like it? It's my own design," Seth announced like he was talking about a new car or something benign. "It sends 500, 00 volts on initial contact. The voltage increases the longer the leads are in the skin. But that's not the beauty of it. No, the beauty is that I can control the amps on this thing too. And as we all know it's not the volts that kills you, it's the amps! Doesn't mean it doesn't sting like a bitch."

Puck was biting on his lip in an effort not to cry from the pain. Donnie could already see the blood from where his teeth dug in too deep. He couldn't do this. Not to Puck. He couldn't let Puck suffer for his mistakes.

"Okay! Okay, I'll do it. Just stop!"

"You'll do what?" Seth asked innocently.

"I'll fix the battery on the ice machine so we can sell it to Quinn," Donnie ground out. "Now turn that thing off before you kill him!"

Seth glanced down at the suddenly very still form on the ground. "Oops, I think it might be too late for that."

Donnie's eyes widened even as he dropped down beside Puck. Seth turned the gun off just a second before Donnie ripped the leads off of his friend. He placed a shaky hand to Puck's neck and felt bile rising in his throat. There was nothing. There was no pulse. He had no pulse. This couldn't be happening. He heard Seth scoffing in the background.

"Well that was unfortunate," he said clicking his tongue. "Look, we better get out of here. If you think the agency is going to frown upon us selling a potential weapon to the highest bidder, what do you think they're going to do about us killing one of the Carter Trio?"

"We? I didn't kill him. You did!"

"Didn't you?" Seth asked, feigning confusion. "You had one job, Gill. And that was to go along with the plan. You're just as deep in this as I am. You chickened out and I had to use the only leverage I have. Now quit blubbering. He's gone and we're late. You're really going to need that money now, dude. He's related to the Avengers. I hear they're really into that avenging stuff. It's kind of their thing."

Donnie shivered even as he felt Seth grabbing him under his arm and dragging him away from the body of his friend. As he moved, his foot accidentally knocked into the bag that Puck was holding only minutes ago. His soup. He spotted the receipt for the order which asked for extra bean sprouts and bok choy to be added. Sam remembered. He hadn't even thought to ask but Sam did. Sam remembered even though he wasn't Donnie's friend. He cared enough to remember. Donnie dropped the bag and the receipt.

"What have I done?"  
_____________________________________________  
Phil blinked in wonder as he watched himself on the screen. It was a video summary of the ongoing tests with TAHITI and the increasingly more horrible outcomes. Catatonia, psychosis, hypergraphia, aphasia… the list seemed to continue on. He sat in horrified silence as he watched himself continue to struggle with these tests. The final video was filmed shortly before the Invasion. In it, the video Phil was clearly uncomfortable with continuing the tests but he sighed and recommended that they carry on with the project. Phil didn't remember making the video or working on the project. He was actually kind of happy about that fact. But he didn't need his memories to know why he would continue with the tests.

"Why would you do that?" Clint asked once the video was over. "Why would you keep the tests going when it was making everyone lose it? On that note, how has Phil not completely lost it?"

"To answer that last question, it's because we wiped his memory of any and everything having to do with TAHITI. We did the same for all the other agents. Except we set the others up with new identities away from SHIELD."

"Why didn't you do that with Phil?" Clint asked. His voice was quiet as if by making the suggestion Nick was going to scoop Phil up and erase him from the archer's life. Phil placed a hand on Clint's shoulder and sighed.

"Same reason I wanted to continue with the tests," Phil said. "Because we were hoping that TAHITI could bring an Avenger back if needed. I suppose I was a bit more limited in my thinking. While I wanted to make sure we could bring back an Avenger, I'm pretty sure I was only thinking of one Avenger in particular." Clint looked confused. "Every person tapped for the Avengers Imitative possessed some sort of superhuman ability either through nature, mechanics or chemicals. All but one. I think the reason I wanted to continue with the testing was because I was worried about something happen to that one in particular. And I couldn't stand the idea of something happening to that particular one."

"I don't get it," Clint mumbled. "Who was the Avenger?"

"Really, Barton? You still don't get it almost twelve years later? What the hell is it going to take for you to understand that you're important to people?" Nick asked, incredulously. Clint's eyes widened.

"Me? You…. I… but that means that… you intended me to be in the Avengers from the beginning? I thought I was in because I happened to be there."

Phil repressed the urge to roll his eyes. He also had to push down on the anger that coursed through his veins every time Clint let his self-loathing slip to the surface. Because it didn't matter how much progress he and Nick made with the archer, there would always be this part of Clint that wondered why anyone thought he was worth it. He took a deep breath and hit Clint on the back of the head. Hard.

"Ouch! What the hell, Phil?"

"Why are you surprised that we wanted you in the Avengers? There are very few SHIELD agents we would've trusted with that responsibility. Besides, you already had a codename. It worked. So stop asking questions because of course you were handpicked for the Avengers Initiative." Clint laughed, ducking his head somewhat.

"Okay. I get it. Thanks." He took another moment to quietly laugh before looking back up. "So where do we go from here? We have to tell the kids that they're aliens. Or at least that they have alien DNA."

"You're right," Nick sighed. That was not going to be a fun conversation .the Avengers were highly attached to the three kids. The attachment was, of course, stronger between Steve and his great grandson. Nick was not looking forward to having to tell them anything about those kids. Especially Steve.

"But first maybe we should have some answers about what kind of alien we're dealing with," Clint said. "We need to talk to our alien expert."

"We have an alien expert?"

The younger man didn't reply. He merely gave them a look that questioned their intelligence and character before dragging Nick's phone across the desk. He turned on the speakerphone before punching in a number too quickly for him to process. It took a few rings and then someone answered. An all too familiar someone.

"Thor's phone, Darcy speaking."

"Hey, Darce. It's me."

"Sup, sexy? You need the big guy?"

"Yeah, is he around?"

"Yup, Jane is trying to convince him that there aren't people trapped in the phone. Again. Did you really have to make his lock screen wallpaper a picture Tony pretending to be locked in a box? You're such a troll, Barton." Phil couldn't help but chuckle at that one. "Oh, hey there, Son of Coul!"

"Hello, Darcy. Director Fury is here too."

"Oh, it's serious then. Hold on a minute," Darcy said. She clearly put her hand over the phone as the sound was somewhat muffled. "Okay, he's coming."

"Clint, Darcy said you have need of me?"

"Yeah, we have a question about aliens. Director Fury is going to describe this one to you. I was hoping you might have an idea about who it could be."

"That sounds reasonable."

Nick cleared his throat and leaned forward. "He appears to have died over a thousand years ago but his body is still decaying. The tissue has great regenerative properties. Our scientists guess that he was around eight feet tall before death. He has blue skin."

"Blue skin," Thor repeated. "I cannot be certain without seeing for myself but it appears that you have a member of the Kree people. But that should be impossible. No member of the Kree has ever visited Earth. Unless…"

"Unless what?"

Thor sighed. "There were rumors of the Kree expanding to worlds in the Nine Realms and beyond. Their goal was to perform experiments on the peoples of these worlds. My father sent me to investigate these rumors. I visited Earth and found no sign of the Kree. Hemidall has watched over human development and he has not noticed any sign of Kree involvement."

"But?" Clint prompted.

Thor laughed grimly. "But Hemidall is not all knowing. He may have missed something. There is a possibility that the Kree did visit Earth and completed their goal without our knowledge."

"If they did somehow mix their DNA with those of the humans at the time, it's feasible to say that it could've been passed down through the years. There could be people today that have alien DNA."

"Yes," Thor agreed. "None of the other experiments we came across worked. It would be strange if the experiments were a success on Earth. But I'm guessing given your line of questioning that you have found individuals who are of Kree descent." There was a pause. "It's the young ones, is it not?"

"Yes," Clint answered without hesitation. Because of course he did. Phil really did need to work with the man on learning when to keep some things quiet. He glared at the archer who ignored him in favor of focusing on the phone. "But you already knew that didn't you, Thor?" Phil and Nick exchanged glances.

"I suspected there was something more than human about them. But I did not suspect that it could be the Kree. If I may, I would like to see this body that you speak of. I would like to confirm our suspicions before I search for answers."

"Very well, I'll send Clint to pick you and I'll take you all to the Guest House where we've been keeping him."

"I will await your arrival," Thor said before disconnecting the call.

Phil sat back in his seat. Idly, his fingers traced a pattern on the arm of his chair. He didn't need to look to know that it was the same pattern he had been drawing a lot of lately. He opened his mouth to say something but he paused for a moment looking at Clint. He looked exhausted and Phil knew that had everything to do with the archer's concern for Phil and now for the kids he considered his family. No, the symbols weren't worth mentioning. He saw the video. He heard all the symptoms. Phil was reasonably sure that he was perfectly fine.  
_____________________________________________  
It was a well-known fact that Aaron Puckerman was an abusive asshole. Well, he still could be an abusive asshole but he was no longer around Puck so Santana's interest in his current status was minuscule. The important thing to take away from this was that he was an abusive asshole towards his own damn son who was, back then, the sweetest and kindest kid that anyone could've asked for. But his father didn't appreciate that or him. Instead of hugs and love, he offered up abuse of the physical and verbal variety. Santana knew about it to a certain extent but her own family life left a lot to be desired. She didn't know how to help him other than just be a friend. That is until the day that Aaron beat Puck so badly, the man thought that he actually killed his son. He was so certain of the fact that he fled the scene immediately and didn't come back for eight years.

The truth was, Aaron did come dangerously close to kill him. In the end, he broke several of Puck's ribs and one of them pierced his lungs. It wasn't the first broken bone he received at the hands of his father but it was the first one that Santana felt as if someone broke her ribs. Somehow she was feeling his pain. She felt it as if it were her own and she knew that she had to get to him. She never rode her bike so fast before.

Eight years after the fact, Santana still didn't know how or why she knew Puck was hurting that day. She just accepted that for that one brief moment in time, they were connected mentally. Her phantom pain forced her to alert people that Puck was hurting. When she went to visit him in the hospital that afternoon, a doctor told her that it was because she got an ambulance to her friend so quickly that he was still alive. The doctor also slipped her a few lollipops on the sly. She really did love Rachel's dad.

She never experienced anything like that again. Puck had been hurt in various ways over the course of the past eight years through football, fight clubs and his own rampant stupidity but she never felt it again. She honestly was of the belief that she made it up or just had a lucky guess that something was wrong. That is until a Tuesday when she was eighteen years old and her whole chest suddenly felt like it was on fire. Despite having only experienced that one time in her life, she knew what it meant.

"Puck," she gasped out breathlessly. Sam was holding onto her arm in case her trembling limbs decided to give out. Skye was standing by with a wide eyed confused look on her face. Santana ignored her gaping in favor of gripping Sam's hand. "Sammy, we have to get to Puck. He needs us."

"What's going on? He said he'd be right back after he checked on Donnie."

"No," she protested, pushing away from him and swaying a bit. "No, we need to get to him now. Trust me, Sammy. I know it sounds weird. But this happened before when we were ten and he almost died then. I can't let him die."

Sam stared at her for a brief moment before nodding. With that said, he supported her as they raced upstairs to Puck's room. She was dimly aware of Skye following after them but she didn't pay it any attention. Her sole focus was on getting to that room. She prayed that she would get up there and find out that she was panicking for nothing. She would find that he was fine. Everything was….

He was lying on the floor in the center of the room. His limbs sprawled awkwardly. The bag carrying the soup was also on the floor a short distance away from him. The contents spilling out of the bag. The liquid forming in a straight line away from the body. The body… the body.

"Puck?" Sam's choked voice snapped her out of trance state. "He doesn't look like he's breathing. San, he's not breathing."

She wanted to panic with him but she knew better. The first time this happened, he was almost dead but he came back and lived to annoy her and the world for ten more years. There was no way she was going to believe that this connection let her feel him in need and didn't give her the time to save him. She entered the room and dropped to her knees beside him. She pressed her fingers against his neck. Just as she suspected there was no pulse.

"Sammy, get the First Aid kit that Natasha packed us. It should be in his closet." Sam nodded as she ripped Puck's t-shirt and started pumping her hand against his chest. This wasn't going to work. He was too far gone. She didn't know what happened but she knew that he needed something stronger than this. But it would do for now.

"What is going on? You should be calling for an ambulance," Skye protested. Santana rolled her eyes and continued to work, breathing air into his lungs and damn near praying that he would start breathing on his own. She heard Sam fumbling through Puck's closet but kept her focus on keeping count. Finally, she heard Sam let out a cry of triumph. He came rushing over, sliding across the messy soup remains to land beside her. He pulled out the machine she knew was in there and started pressing the pads against Puck's bare skin. "Is that a portable defibrillator?! Why do you just have that in a first aid kit?"

"You've clearly never met Clint Barton," Sam quipped. "Okay, move back, San."

She did as he requested and scooted back as the machine assessed his vitals. It too found no sign of life. She winced as the machine beeped before sending a jolt of electricity through her best friend's too lifeless body. The heart monitor line remained flat. There was another beep and another jolt. Still no response.

"Come on, come on," she whispered. Her hands clenched tightly at her sides. "You can't do this to me, dumb ass. We're supposed to be partners. I can't do this without you." Another beep and another jolt. "You can't do this to Steve, Noah. Losing you will kill him. So come back!" Another beep and another jolt. This time a jagged line formed on the screen. But that was drowned out by loud, gasping breath he took as his body arched upwards. Santana laughed breathlessly in relief. She clasped his hand in hers watching as his heartbeat started to regulate itself slowly.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again," Sam muttered, rocking back to sit down completely. He reached out blindly and let his hand rest on Puck's shoulder.

"Am I missing something? Why are we not calling for an ambulance or something? He should be in a hospital."

"He'll be okay once we get him home," Santana assured her. "We don't really trust the doctors around here. They seem a little too eager when it comes to his blood. The only doctor we trust is Bruce Banner. And before we call him, we need to know what happened here."

"Or it won't be Uncle Bruce that shows up. It'll be his less friendly side, the Hulk," Sam chimed in with a tired laugh. He glanced down at Puck and smiled brightly. Santana looked down in time to see Puck's eyes fluttering open. "Hey, Sleeping Beauty. Welcome back."

"S'mmy?" he murmured. "Your wings are on fire."

Sam frowned. "My what?"

"Wings…. Your wings on… fire."

"Uh, okay. I'll put them out. Thanks for telling me," Sam said slowly.

"S'mmy?"

"Yeah, buddy?"

"Can you tell Skye to stop shaking?" Sam looked over at Skye who was sitting perfectly still on the bed. She sat up straighter and threw them a look. Puck glanced blearily in her direction. "'s better. Thanks."

"Hey, babe," Santana whispered, petting his cheek softly. His unfocused gaze met hers and a silly smile formed on his face. "What are you looking at?"

"Your eyes are purple but they're pretty."

"Purple eyes, huh? Yeah, Uncle Bruce is going to have his work cut out with you tonight, buddy," Santana murmured, shaking her head. "But first things first, what happened? You were coming to get Donnie and then we found you like this. So what happened?"

Puck's brow furrowed as he tried to focus through the pain and fuzziness in his head. She brushed her fingers through his hair. Then she could see the clarity in his eyes. "Donnie…"

"Donnie did this?" Skye asked, surprised.

"No, Seth… but Donnie working with him," Puck replied. "Seth made him."

Santana continued to brush her fingers through his hair as she tried to piece the puzzle together. "This is about the random freezing that's been happening, isn't it?" Puck nodded tightly. "Of course, Donnie made the machine probably because Seth convinced him they were going to make a lot of money off of it. But Donnie is a bigger bleeding heart than you and he probably changed his mind. So Seth used the only leverage he had against Donnie."

"Puck," Sam finished. He pointed to several nasty looking burns on Puck's chest. "He used a Taser on him. From the looks of it, it was a homemade one."

"I'm going to rip that smarmy bastard's head off," Santana promised. She tapped Puck's cheeks as she saw his eyes slipping shut. "Hey, two more questions you need to answer and then we call Uncle Bruce and Uncle Tony and you can get some sleep back at the Tower. When is this sale supposed to happen and who is the buyer?"

"Um, he said today and Quinn?"

"Q is buying weapons of mass destruction?" Santana asked, looking up at an equally confused Sam. Skye inched closer.

"Do you think they meant Ian Quinn?" she suggested. Puck narrowed his eyes in thought before nodding again. "That's really not good. Ian Quinn is a very bad man."

"He's buying an ice death ray off a couple of teenagers. He did not strike me as a very good man," Sam countered. "We have any idea where this meet is supposed to happen?"

There was a loud crash outside. The three more mobile people raced to the window to see a whirlwind of activity coming from the far edge of the campus. Santana rolled her eyes. She had a really good idea what that was about. Her confirmation came a moment later when a huge chunk of ice slammed against the side of the dorm building.

"Son of a bitch," she grumbled. "So much for trying to keep this quiet."

"We have to go," Puck announced. He was sitting up and trying to actually stand. Santana huffed as she stomped back over to the idiot. "San, we have to save Donnie."

"Donnie is a big boy. He got himself into this mess. He can get himself out."

"Would you do it for me?"

Santana clenched her jaw before turning to face Sam. "I hope you feel comfortable running with a grown man on your back."

"You do remember who we live with, right? This will still be the least weird thing I've done this week." Santana nodded.

"Touché."  
_____________________________________________  
Clint was really starting to miss the days when they were in Ohio and the most stressful thing he had to worry about was how many cookies Tony would steal before the kids got home from school. Things were decidedly simpler then. His biggest regret was ever opening his mouth to stay that he was bored in the first place. He knew better than most that there was rarely a middle ground in life. You were either bored out of your mind or up to your nose in shit. Right now, Clint really felt like they were up to their eyeballs in it.

He dragged his knees up to his chest as he stared down at the Infirmary on the Bus. Everyone was frantically moving about as the staff worked with Fitz and Simmons (they were separate people, Clint made a mental note of this for later pondering) to help Donnie completely defrost. It didn't look like it was easy or even painless but the alternative was that he could've ended up dead like Seth. Clint felt bad about that. He really wanted to take a crack at the idiot that dared to hurt a member of his family.

Thankfully, Puck was okay. He shifted his gaze until it landed on the teen. He was once again stuck in a hospital bed with an anxious Sharon and Trip hovering on one side while Santana and Sam crowded the other. He wanted to be down there as well but… he spotted the familiar blonde standing behind Sharon offering silent support. Bobbi. His ex-wife showed up with her best friend. He retreated up to the rafters overlooking the open area of the Infirmary. He smiled softly as a pair of hazel eyes met his. He saw Puck's brow furrow. He shook his head in response. There was no use in getting the kid worked up. He mouthed the word 'later' and gradually Puck relaxed. There would be plenty of time for Clint to visit with his protégé when he didn't run the risk of getting into a screaming match with his other visitors.

Puck was facing at least a week of bed rest, possibly more once they got him back to the Tower where Bruce was already preparing to receive them. Bruce seemed convinced that Puck's super soldier blood would be enough to heal any lingering physical and cognitive damage inflicted by his near death experience. Clint knew it wasn't just super soldier blood working in the kid's favor. There was also the DNA he received from the Kree. Thor confirmed it. Clint idly wondered if any of them were going to turn blue or develop some sort of kickass superpower. Sadly, Thor didn't think any of this was cool. He said anything to do with the Kree should be regarded with extreme caution. Clint was pretty good at reading between the lines. He knew it was only Thor's fondness for Puck, Sam and Santana that was keeping him from murdering them all. Clint didn't know anything about the Kree but he did know Puck, Santana and Sam. He trusted them. No alien DNA was going to change that.

He registered her presence a few minutes before she started talking. He took advantage of those few moments to work on how he felt about the hacker known as Skye. If he was a more mature person, he would be able to verbalize that he was jealous of her. But he wasn't and he couldn't. He wasn't jealous of her by a long shot. He just didn't like her. She was all wide eyed innocence that was poorly covered by jokes, deflection and sarcasm. That was his thing. Just like he was the only one that made those fond smiles form on May's lips. Just like Coulson was his mentor. He was not jealous of some nobody hacker named Mary Sue Poots.

Okay, so yeah, he was definitely jealous.

"I wondered why we had all these really high places around here," Skye said as she stood behind him. "I thought at first that Coulson and Fury were just sadists that liked to torture the short people but I get it now. It's for you, isn't it?"

"Wouldn't know," Clint replied, not bothering to look up at her. "This is the first time I've ever been allowed on here."

"Oh," she muttered. A tense silence fell over the pair. "So why are you up here? I thought you would've been down there."

"It's a little crowded."

"So which one of them is your ex?" Clint did look up at that point. She flushed. "I just mean that as much as Puck talked about you, it seemed like you were close. And the only reason you would be avoiding being around him would probably be because you were trying to avoid one of them. So I just assumed that you used to date one of them and I'm just going to shut up now."

Clint felt a smile forming. "Bobbi."

"Bobbi, the impossible gorgeous blonde over there?"

"That would be the one. We parted on less than amicable terms."

"Meaning what exactly?"

"Meaning that her best friend/really, really big dude nicknamed Mack came to kick my ass/serve me our divorce papers while she set fire to my bike."

Skye winced, sitting down beside him. "What did you do to deserve that?"

"According to her version of events, I was cheating on her with my partner."

"Were you?"

Clint shrugged. "Maybe I was on some level. Nat and I, we… there's always been this thing between us. But we never crossed any line while I was married. I would never do that."

"Never thought you would," Skye admitted. "I don't think Coulson would talk about you so fondly if you were the kind that would cheat on his wife."

"Coulson talks about me?"

"Yeah," Skye muttered. "All the time."

"Really?" Clint asked, wincing at the surprise in his voice.

"Oh, yeah," Skye replied, seemingly unaware of how bitter she sounded in that moment. "You're almost all he ever talks about."

"If it's any consolation, I've heard a lot about you too," Clint admitted. "He really likes you, you know? He doesn't even talk about the others as much as he talks about you. I didn't even know that Fitz and Simmons were two separate people until today. That was kind of mind-blowing."

She snickered, looking to the side. "It does help. Thanks, Agent Barton."

"Hey, there will be none of that Agent crap," Clint chided. He nudged her in the side. "You can call me Clint the Great or Magnificent. It's up to you."

"How about Clint the Full of Crap?"

"Nah, that one was taken by the ex."

"That was definitely less than amicable terms," Skye said, laughing softly. Clint found himself smiling as well.

"Skye, can I ask you a question?"

"You just did." Clint glared at her from the corner of his eye. She smiled brightly. "Go ahead."

"Why did you go along with their story?"

"What story?"

Clint arched an eyebrow. "The story they just told Phil that totally and completely removed Donnie from any responsibility for the machine."

"That wasn't a story. That was what happened."

"Uh huh. Look I've seen Dormer. He definitely didn't come up with the ice machine on his own. He also didn't come up with a plan to lure Fitz to the campus. That was Donnie. I get why they protected him. But I was wondering why you did."

Skye shrugged, leaning forward so that her arms were resting against the railing. "I'm sure you read my file. I've been in and out of foster homes. I didn't have friends or family growing up. And I guess, in the span of a few hours, I felt more connected to them than I have to anyone in my life. I felt like they could be really good friends. Even Donnie."

Clint chewed on his lip as he sat next to Coulson's latest stray. He supposed he was lucky. He managed to get a good eleven years in before Coulson found another one to distract his attention away from Clint. He wasn't delusional. He saw the way that Coulson looked at Skye. It was the way he looked at Clint. It was really a matter of time, he supposed. Phil had a big heart and an obvious affection for orphans. He was just happy that he picked a good one. He definitely didn't want to know what would happen if Phil tried to pass off Ward. Then again, he imagined Ward wouldn't really be a fan of that idea either. Now, he kind of wanted it to happen just to see the look of horror and disgust on Ward's face. He laughed, earning a quizzical look from Skye.

"Don't worry about it, kid."

"You do know you're like barely five years old than me, right? The kid thing doesn't work on me."

"Oh no, I have waited years for a little sibling so I could pull the kid card. You will not deprive me of this or ruin it for me. Because it has seriously been a super long time. I really thought Phil and Melinda would've come through a lot sooner but hey, better late than never. And they could've given me worse for a little sister."

"Little sister… you think that, I… me?"

"Yes you, Mary Sue Poots. Now Santana tells me you wanted dirt on Ward. Did you ever hear about the time he insulted Trip, Puck's step cousin or whatever and Sharon, the other blonde down there, ripped him a new one in front of all these visiting Chinese dignitaries?"

Skye chewed on her lip in an obviously failing attempt not to laugh. She finally gave in to the urge pulling a laugh from him as well. He noticed Phil standing not too far away watching the pair getting to know each other. But he figured Phil had a lot on his mind. And if watching his kids was the way that he was going to help clear some of this thoughts, Clint had no problem playing the role he was meant to.

"She ended up tasering him. Although after today Tasers aren't really funny… unless they happen to Ward. It's always funny when it happens to Ward."  
_____________________________________________  
Donnie woke slowly and painfully. The last thing he remembered was the machine going haywire. The battery worked… a little too well. He couldn't shut it off. He remembered Seth getting zapped by the machine. He remembered Santana and Sam with a loopy looking Puck on his back arriving along with one of the agents who interrogated him before. He remembered doing everything in his power to redirect the machine from his friends. He felt a burst of cold and then nothing. He opened his eyes slowly, wincing at the bright light overhead. He closed his eyes again and listened to his surroundings.

"Do you have any twos?"

"Nope, go fish."

"How exactly is this working? Britt's not even here. I feel like that there is some serious cheating going on."

"It's only cheating if nosey people point it out."

"That's not at all how cheating works, San."

Despite himself Donnie laughed. He felt more than saw their attention shift to him. He heard one of them cross over to him and then the bright light was turned away. He opened his eyes to smile gratefully up at Sam. With opened eyes he was better able to see what was going on in the room. They were in some sort of hospital room. Puck was in the bed opposite from him wearing his normal pajamas. Santana and Sam were sitting Indian style at the foot of his bed with a pile of cards between them. Brittany's bright smile greeted him from the screen of one of the many Stark screens that littered the place. Blaine was sitting in a chair between the two beds but in view of the screen. Skye, the agent they met earlier, was dozing off in a chair on Donnie's other side.

"Where are we?"

"Avengers Tower," Blaine replied. "Glad you're okay, by the way. Also thanks for the distraction. I'm pretty sure my mother was never leaving."

"Glad to be of assistance. Wait, why I am in the Tower?" he asked, sitting up straight. "Why am I not under arrest? Or in jail."

"Because San, Sammy and I are awesome," Puck answered with a ghost of his usual bravado. Donnie saw that he was still pale. He could just make out the wads of gauze on his chest that no doubt hid badly burned skin. Donnie frowned remembering how lifeless his roommate looked lying on the floor. Lifeless because he was dead and it was his fault, though Donnie didn't miss the fact that Puck refused to meet his eyes head on. "Hey, we're okay. I'm okay. It's fine."

"Dude, Seth killed you," Donnie hissed. "Seth killed you because I backed out of our deal at the last minute. The deal I shouldn't have made in the first place."

"Well, now you know and you won't do it again," Santana said, before jumping off the bed. "Before we forget, we got you something. Bout time you woke up."

Donnie felt tears welling in his eyes as Santana reached into one of the various machines in the room and pulled out a bowl of soup. He didn't need to look to know it was the earlier requested pho.

"It's not the same one," she said, smiling a little. "Sammy kind of rolled around in that one. Didn't think you wanted it."

"Oh, yeah because me kneeling in it was the problem. Not the fact that it was on the floor in the first place," Sam countered.

"Why are you doing this?" he cut into their argument. "You came after me. You didn't have to do that. You helped me. Why?"

Sam rolled his eyes before hitting Donnie on the back of the head. Hard.

"I thought you were supposed to be a genius. You need us to really spell it out for you? You are our friend. Not because of Puck but because you're one of us."

"Literally," Santana chimed in. "Uncle Bruce ran some DNA tests on you when you were thawing out. You've got alien DNA like the four of us."

"Alien DNA?!"

"Yeah, we'll talk about it later," Sam shook his head. "Pretty sure this chapter has gone on long enough."

"Chapter?"

"I mean, day," Sam tried again. Santana threw him a dirty look.

Donnie picked up the spoon Blaine helpfully slid his way and started in on his soup. He felt the warm broth chasing away the lingering effects of the cold from the inside. The rest of his felt pretty warmed by the bickering and bantering happening around him. These people were his friends. They were his family. That felt pretty awesome.  
_____________________________________________  
Puck smiled faintly as his friends surrounded Donnie content on reenacting the final moments of the epic battle against the ice machine. He remembered some of himself but finally he gave into his own body's need to heal. Fourteen hours later, he was starting to feel almost like himself. Almost. The reveal that he wasn't just a super solider… that he was also somehow an alien had him feeling a little off. Well, that and what he saw when he looked at his friends for too long.

"Puck?"

He glanced down at the forgotten tablet to see that Brittany was still there. He picked it up and rested it on his raised knees. Concerned blue eyes stared at him from the screen. She pressed her palm against the monitor and he lifted his own hand to do the same.

"It's going to be okay, Puck. I promise."

"Why did Donnie live and Seth died? They were both frozen but Donnie was already thawing by the time Clint, Phil and Nick got there. So why is he alive and not Seth?"

"That's the real mystery, isn't it?"

"He froze. He should be dead but he's not. He's here and he's okay. I'm happy but…. Something is happening to us, Britt."

"I know."

"I'm kind of scared."

"Don't be," Brittany said, firmly. Her eyes were serious yet reassuring. "This isn't a bad thing. It's just a step towards becoming who you were meant to be."

"You know, don't you? About who and what we are."

"Not the whole picture," she admitted. "I got bits and pieces. I just know that this is what needs to happen to make sure that we all have a future. Everything is going to work out."

Puck took a shaky breath. "Okay."


	12. Castle of Glass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Blaine learns to use his words, Puck is still seeing things, Santana is the only one holding them all together and Tony is an idiot.

Blaine would like to point out that everything started to change the day that Puck brought his roommate back to the Tower to the meet the family so to speak. He knew that this little meeting was mostly Sam's idea as it was becoming increasingly more obvious that they needed someone to look after Puck when he was living on campus. Santana somehow managed to avoid any issues transitioning into SHIELD whereas Puck was the total opposite and way too determined to follow in Clint's footsteps than any of them felt comfortable with. So it made sense to form a relationship with Donnie so they had another set of eyes watching him. It did make sense and Blaine really was all about it until the day they actually met him. Blaine would like the record to show that he didn't have a problem with Donnie before that day. He seemed pleasant enough the few times they interacted during their Skype sessions with Puck. Puck seemed to genuinely like him and Santana didn't hate him. That was enough for Blaine. He was determined to make friends with the quiet, formerly homeschooled teen that somehow managed to worm his way into his friends' lives.

He seriously was all about the Make Donnie Our Best Friend Forever plan... until the moment Steve stepped off the elevator with Puck, Santana, and Donnie in tow. Blaine didn't know what it was about that instant that marked Donnie as a sudden threat to him but he knew it happened in that split second between the elevator opening and Clint jumping down from the rafters to mock Puck for even thinking about quitting. Looking back on that moment, Blaine realized that he knew at that moment that everything was going to change… and that it was going to change without him.

He was only confirmed in that belief as the evening wore on and Donnie emerged from his quiet shell. Blaine could only watch with a growing sense of unease as a friendly rivalry blossomed between Sam and Donnie over a game of Uno. Blaine watched as Santana teased their new friend with the same flirty edge she used on Sam and Puck. He watched as Puck needled his roommate with the same reassuring and warm smiles he used on Blaine and Sam. And through it all, Brittany was watching them all with that secret smile. The smile that promised something big was on the horizon. Blaine officially felt out of his depth that night.

Over the next few months, Blaine could only continue to watch as his friends grew closer and closer to this… outsider. Except when he was around the other three, Donnie seemed less the outsider and more like he belonged. Blaine, on the other hand, felt like an alien amongst them. He knew that overall, the five of them came together as friends rather quickly. But it seemed almost turtle-paced compared to how comfortable they all were with one another by the conclusion of that first weekend. Five months later, they were this unshakable clique and Blaine was still on the fringes.

Blaine was familiar with being jealous. Growing up, he was jealous of Cooper and the attention he commanded from their parents and stepfather. But he was also familiar with the futility of sharing those feelings. It never got him very far with his mother. And Tony was never big on the heart to heart talks. So Blaine fell back on the old Stark family coping methods. No, not alcohol! Sadly, not out a lack of desire, however. Mostly because Pepper went on a cleaning binge and destroyed most of the contents of Tony's alcohol cabinet. She threatened to withhold sex for a year if he even thought about trying to refill it (and Blaine would really like to never hear anything about his father and sex again in life. Because gross). So yeah, there was little to no alcohol in the Tower these days. That was fine because Blaine was having a much more enjoyable time in his father's lab. Or rather  _his_  lab.

Tony claimed that he was so tired of trying to work around Blaine who was "doing the science wrong aka like Bruce" that eventually he gave up. He set Blaine up with one of the unused labs in the Tower where he could science to his heart's content. And that he did. Blaine enjoyed working with seemingly unlimited resources with no fear of consequence for blowing things up that being in the Tower provided. Actually, his dad seemed more disappointed if something didn't blow up at least once a week. It was completely different and more liberating than the home lab setup he had back in Ohio. Here he could do whatever he wanted, when he wanted. Every so often, he would team up with Brittany and work on some project she pulled out of her head. He wished that he had known Brittany earlier in his life. It would've been fun to have someone like Brittany to bounce concepts off of. Especially since the older woman was damned creative when it came to her designs. Blaine finally understood why his father valued his friendship with Bruce so much. Having someone to geek out with was amazing.

Having Brittany around in general (even when contact was mostly through Skype with occasional weekend breaks) was amazing because it helped. It helped that he knew that he had at least one of his friends still on his side. So he did science with Brittany while his other friends grew further and further away from him. Even Sam was spending more and more time outside of the Tower these days. He could only assume at SHIELD. He was losing his friends and there was nothing that he could (or would) do about it.

The day the tension came to a boiling point started off like any normal Tuesday. He and Sam went to school, dealt with the usual rich kid crap and then came back home. Sam went… somewhere while Blaine retreated to his lab as usual. He was content to stay there for the rest of the night when JARVIS alerted him that his mother and stepfather were in the building. His day, understandably, went downhill from there. Apparently, she was there because his father was no longer paying child support checks. Or rather Pepper was no longer paying her child support checks. The fact that his mother was trying to collect checks when she no longer had any kind of custody of him said a lot about her parenting skills. It said a lot about her marriage when Pepper let it slip that Annette was still seeing Tony after she married Stanley. Blaine noticed Clint and Sam sneaking out after that last bit of information. No doubt they were trying to escape the inevitable meltdown and Blaine didn't blame them for that. He would've run away too if he thought he had a chance of actually escaping. So no, Blaine did not blame them for that.

What he did blame Sam for was the fact that he knew the blonde was headed straight to the Academy. He knew that Sam was most likely going to spend the night to give this a chance to blow over. That Blaine blamed Sam for. He was angry and hurting, and not just by the fact that his mother very obviously didn't see him as anything other than a possession, but also by his friends' continuous rejection of him. But today was the last straw. Today he was officially done with all of them. From here on out, he wasn't going to jump the minute they came back to the Tower. He wasn't going to Skype anymore. He was done. If they wanted to replace him with Donnie, the least he could do was having some dignity and not chase after them.

That's why he didn't react when an alarm blared through the Tower. Apparently Puck and Donnie were injured by some kind of exploding ice machine on campus. Initially panic grabbed him as he tried to process or even imagine what that could possibly mean. But he forced it back. This was how he ended up in the same vicious cycle. The vicious cycle that led to him being alone in his lab surrounded by a dozen half completed experiments. Nope, he was not going to run down to the Infirmary. He was going to sit here and work on the engine he and Brittany had created blueprints for. He was about halfway through the designs when the doors to his lab opened with a hiss. He looked up surprised to see a thoroughly wrecked looking Santana and Sam along with some new girl entering his private space. Great, they picked up another one.

"How did you get in here?" he asked in lieu of a greeting.

"Pepper has an override code for all the lab doors in the Tower because for a bunch of geniuses, you are all shockingly oblivious to your own needs," Santana answered, plopping down at the workbench. "By the way, Blaine Stark this is Skye. Just Skye. She's the hacker that's on Phil's team that's obsessed with your dad. She's also distantly related to us."

At this Blaine looked up from his work with an arched eyebrow. Skye was still lingering in the background, too uncomfortable to sit down. But Sam and Santana were poking around like they belonged there. Like there wasn't some huge gap between them all that was mostly created by their distance. He resisted the urge to give into the familiarity of the actions. He wasn't going to do this. He was just going to ignore them until they eventually got bored and left…. What did she mean that Skye was distantly related to them?

"Turns out that Puck, San, Skye, Donnie and I all have DNA from some badass, militaristic race called the Kree," Sam answered his silent question, running a hand over his face. He looked exhausted. Santana didn't look much better. Blaine fought the concern. "Why couldn't it be someone cool like the Asgardians? Like why couldn't Thor be our actual uncle instead of the people that apparently visited planets with the intent purpose of creating a master race of warriors?"

Blaine wanted to reply to that. He really, really did. Because alien DNA? That was both terrifying and awesome! He had so many questions. But shared alien DNA did not excuse them from basically ignoring him for the past five months. And beside he made a promise to himself that he was not going to get involved in their stuff anymore. So instead of responding, he merely looked down at the engine once again.

"That's all you have to say?" Santana's voice cut through the silence that settled on the lab. "Seriously, Blaine?"

"What else do you want me to say, Santana?" he asked, calmly.

"Maybe ask us how Puck is doing? You do remember Puck, right? He's about this tall, used to sport a Mohawk and oh, he died about three hours ago."

"He died?!" Blaine yelled forgetting his promise to himself. "But JARVIS said he was in the Infirmary."

"His heart stopped for what we can estimate was anywhere from five or ten minutes," Sam responded. "Bruce was still running tests to see what the extent the damage was when they let the whole alien thing slip out. Needless to say, it's turned into yet another discussion about us but not with us."

Blaine was way too familiar with those but still. He couldn't give into them. That didn't stop him from pulling up the information from the Infirmary. Puck was apparently tasered with a modified Taser that was the equivalent of several of Thor's lightning strikes. Donnie absorbed the brunt of the effects from the ice machine (that he created, a nasty part of Blaine's mind reminded him) and was slowly defrosting. Neither of them should've lived through that. But Puck not only lived, he was already awake and giving Bruce hell while trying to run tests.

"Well, I'm glad he's okay," Blaine finally said.

"Okay, seriously, Blaine? What the hell is your problem?" Santana snapped. "You've had a stick the size of Europe shoved up your ass for the past few months. I was all for confronting you about it but the others were convinced you would come to us when you felt like it. But you didn't and now here we are. So what the hell is your damage?"

"My damage?! You're actually asking  _me_  that?"

"Uh, I'm just going to go back downstairs," Skye announced awkwardly.

"No, you should stay," Blaine countered. "You're part of their team now. I'm the one that doesn't belong. Except this is kind of my lab. So I guess in this case,  _you're_  the outsiders."

"Blaine? What are you talking about?" Sam asked, quietly.

"I'm talking about since the minute you guys bought Donnie around, you've been all over him. You have ignored me for the past five months! Now you expect me to just forget all that and act like everything is fine."

"No, we expect you to remember that this friendship thing is a two way street," Santana countered. "You've been pulling away from us just as much as you think we've been pulling away from you. Every time we try to call or visit, you're holed away in here and JARVIS tells us that we're not allowed to interrupt you and after a while we tried to respect that maybe you wanted some space. So if you want to be pissed off about us hanging out with Donnie, that's valid. But don't act like we just abandoned you. You left us too!"

"Wait, what?" Blaine asked, both in anger and genuine confusion. They really tried to visit him? When was this? "You tried to see me? To talk to me?"

"Whatever," Santana shook her head. "I'm going downstairs. I only came up here because Puck was awake and wondering where you were. The answer is where you always are lately. Here, holed up in your lab, not giving a damn. Thanks for nothing, Blaine! Because I actually feel worse than I did before I stupidly came down here!"

Blaine chewed on his lip as Santana stormed out of the lab. Skye looked between the open door and the only other people in the room. She opened her mouth to say something before closing it just as quick and leaving in Santana's wake. This left just Sam and Blaine. Sam, who wasn't looking at him. Sam, who he could tell was hurting. But so was Blaine.

"Remember the day that you asked me to move in with you guys?" Sam finally spoke breaking the tension in the room. "I told you that you what you did for me was above and beyond what a friend would do. I was more than just grateful. You gave me a home. You gave me a family. How could you ever think that I would replace you?"

Blaine sighed quietly. "I hardly ever see any of you anymore."

"Because we figured you were jealous of Donnie," Sam admitted. "San and Puck wanted to talk to you right away and clear it all up. But I told them that you trusted us and you would talk to us when you were ready. Because you were smart enough to know that none of us would ever want to replace you. That we couldn't replace you even if we wanted because you're family. Maybe we were wrong. Maybe I was wrong."

Sam slipped out the room after that and Blaine couldn't find it in him to call him back. Because clearly there was something he was missing here. He was so sure that he was right before. Though it was pretty obvious that he wasn't seeing the whole picture. But he was so sure that he was right. He had to be. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. He didn't just screw this up. He did not. They were the ones that messed up. They were the ones that screwed up. Weren't they?

"Damn it!" he yelled before throwing his screwdriver across the room. It narrowly missed Tony's head as he entered the lab. Blaine glared at his father. "What did they tell you to come up here and talk to me?"

"Nope," Tony replied, calmly. "Santana and Sam are on the training floor. Clint took one look at them both and banned them from the Infirmary. He let Skye in and told those two to go out work out their anger. Puck doesn't need any more stress. The kid may be some kind of alien/super soldier hybrid but he still needs a functioning heart to live. I think. Maybe. Bruce is reasonably sure that he needs his heart in working condition. So basically that means no stress on him or his fragile human shaped heart for the next few weeks."

"Isn't SHIELD just a fancy code name for stress?"

"Yes, that's why he'll be staying here for the next few weeks," Tony answered, sitting on the stool next to Blaine's. "So you want to tell me what's going on so we can squash it before you end up giving your friend another heart attack?" he paused. "Unless you don't want to squash it. Kid, I know that I opened the Tower to them and I am kinda fond of them, but if you give me the word, they're gone."

The corners of Blaine's mouth twitched. He didn't doubt his father would do it if he asked. But he also knew that they wouldn't be going very far. Tony was more than kinda fond of Blaine's friends. Honestly, despite everything, Blaine felt the same.

"No, Dad. I don't want to kick them out."

"I didn't think you did," Tony chimed in, nudging his son on the shoulder.

"Did they really try to see me during the past few months?"

"Several times," Tony confirmed. "But you told JARVIS you didn't want to be disturbed. You know for an AI that I created, he's disturbingly loyal to you. You didn't want them in and they didn't get in." Blaine sighed. Tony placed a hand on his shoulder. "Talk to me, kid."

"It's so stupid, now that I actually think about it. I was just jealous of Donnie. Like I actually believed that they were replacing me with Donnie for the stupidest reason too."

"Because of what Brittany said to you on the roof before we left Lima?" Blaine nodded. Tony snorted. "You're right. That is stupid."

"Thanks, Dad."

"No, hear me out. I know that you think that there is something more to Brittany's cryptic weirdness and like I told Clint this afternoon, you're probably right. Well, actually now we know that she was definitely right. But I also know that whatever is supposed to be happening with those three is definitely not happening without you. You all have been connected at the hip since you left Lima. That's not going to change, Blaine. Friends like those don't just fade away."

"They're aliens," Blaine pointed out. "They share common ancestors. It actually makes sense now that they're so close. They're essentially cousins."

"Yeah, they are freakishly close to each other but they're also very loyal. They're not going to turn their back on you, kid. I know you don't have the best track record with friends or with family but those kids? Those kids are in it for the long haul."

"Why would they even want me?" Blaine mumbled. "I mean we've seen what Santana and Puck can do. I'm sure given a chance, Sammy and the others could do that as well. I'm a regular person. I'm only human, Dad. Nothing special about me."

Tony fiddled with the edge of Blaine's blueprints before exhaling slowly. "Wanna do me a favor? List the members of the Avengers."

"What? Why?"

"Just do it. I'm trying to see if you can remember seeing as how none of us have seen you for more than a few hours in like five months."

Blaine rolled his eyes but did as his father asked. "Thor, Black Widow, the Hulk, Captain America, Hawkeye and of course, Iron Man."

"Right, and of those people how many of them are genetically enhanced?"

Blaine let out a sigh. "Black Widow and Captain America. And I guess the Hulk."

"Okay. What about Thor?"

"He's an alien."

"Right again, fruit of my amazing loins. There's hope for you yet. Now one more question. What would you consider Clint, Bruce and myself?"

"I just said that Uncle Bruce is genetically enhanced."

"Yeah, no, you actually said the Hulk. I'm reasonably sure that Bruce Banner is not the threat when you first compare him and the Hulk. Of course we all know better but yeah, to the average person, the Hulk is the dangerous one. Clint is just a normal guy with really awesome eyesight who can do complicated physics equations in his head but not a drop of any genetic tampering or alien in his DNA. And me? I'm just a guy with a suit." Blaine blinked as he realized he walked right into that one. "Everything that is special about me, Bruce and Clint comes from our brains. And you, Blaine Stark, are building a nuclear fission engine from scratch based off designs that Brittany drew on the back of a napkin. I think that makes you kind of special too."

Blaine dragged the blueprints over and frowned as he realized it was a napkin. A  _Hello Kitty_  napkin. There were so many questions. So very many questions but he let it slide in favor of fixing the huge mess he created out of nothing.

"So you're saying that I should suit up and join the little team they're building?"

"God no," Tony blurted. "The last thing in the world I would ever tell you to do is put a suit on and be a superhero. This life is hard, Blaine. I don't wish it on anyone. But at the same time I know that you will suit up one day and I'm semi okay with that. And even if you don't, I know you belong with those guys. Whatever team they're putting together consciously or not, you're a part of it. You have been since Lima, Ohio."

"Maybe not," Blaine sulked. "I kind of screwed everything up. They're right. I should've just told them how I was feeling. But I acted like an ass and pulled away from them too. They're never going to forgive me."

"They will once you talk to them. It's a mutual thing, Blaine. They should've talked to you too. They shouldn't have let you linger in silence. That was my bad too. Because I saw something was wrong but I let it go because I thought you would know better. I keep forgetting that you're still a kid."

"I'm almost eighteen."

"You're still my kid."

"Valid point," Blaine conceded. "So how do I talk to them? I don't even know how I'm supposed to begin broaching that topic. I was acting completely ridiculously. I should've just talked to them about how I feel. And now it might be too late."

Tony pursed his lips. "I'm not really sure how you should start that conversation. Although if I were you, I would be more concerned with how you're going to finish it."

"What do you…? Oh, my god, has JARVIS been transmitting this conversation to the whole Tower?!"

"Not the whole Tower. Just the gym where Santana and Sammy are. Well, where they were. Pretty sure they're probably halfway here."

Halfway was a definite underestimate. No sooner had those words left his father's mouth were Santana and Sam storming back into the lab wearing twin expressions of disappointment. Blaine bit his lip and sat up straight.

"Guys, I'm sorry."

"Sorry? You're sorry?!" Santana repeated incredulously. "You dumbass… we're sorry! I thought that there was something odd about you and Donnie but I never thought you were so stupid that you would think that Donnie could ever replace you. We like Donnie but he's not you. You're Blaine. You're the reason we live in a fancy ass tower and have friends and a family that cares about us. You're more a part of us than our weird alien cousin connection."

"You know it's lucky you're hot because honestly sometimes you're kind of dumb," Sam chimed in. Blaine rolled his eyes but felt his lips curling slightly.

"We're okay?"

"Yeah, stupid," Santana smiled. "As long as you promise to remember that we're not just friends. We're family. And that means you're not getting replaced. No one is ditching you for Skye or for Donnie. We're kind of attached to you."

Blaine nodded his head slowly. "I've been such a jerk to Donnie."

"It's cool. Donnie was homeschooled and literally had no friends growing up. He doesn't even understand how this whole friendship thing works honestly. Hell, he thought Seth was his friend and that guy was a dick that was only using him to build an ice death ray. So yeah, I'm sure he'll be fine."

"That's really disturbing and sad, San. Thanks for that."

"You're welcome," she chirped. "Now, as I was saying earlier. Puck is awake and wondering where you are. You want to come down and see him before he has another heart attack moment?"

"About that…. You guys said he was dead for ten minutes. How exactly did you bring him back from the dead?"

"We used the portable defibrillator. The latest mad science project out of Stark Industries. That thing might be small but it really comes in handy. You did well."

Blaine felt the corners of his mouth lifting. It was his design and sort of his idea to build the defibrillators that could fit in a standard SHIELD field kit. He heard Natasha complaining about Clint and his seemingly never-ending ability to find ways to almost die in the field. She told him once that she didn't know when their official first kiss was as a couple due to all the times she had to give him CPR in the field. Clint was understandably less than pleased by her proclamation. Blaine remembered coming up with the plans and then the actual first prototype later that week. He also remembered that they ended up using it on Clint pretty much that same day. They really needed to work on Clint's self-preservation. Because he honestly didn't seem to have any. At all.

"So are you all done fighting now? Because I have to say it was only amusing for the first few weeks and then after that it was just depressing and sad."

"Yeah, we're done," Santana grinned, looping an arm around Blaine's shoulders. He leaned into her loose embrace with a grin of his own. She started to say something when a thought seemingly occurred to her. "Wait, you weren't seriously going to kick us out, were you, Uncle Tony?"

"Nah, I was actually going move you guys down a level temporarily," Tony answered honestly, earning a mock glare from Blaine. "What, kid? You and I both know that you don't want these guys to leave. Saying things while angry was your mother's thing. Try not to follow in her footsteps."

Blaine narrowed his eyes. "Speaking of mom, where is she?"

"The Plaza Hotel. I really hope she doesn't think we're paying for that either," Tony shrugged. "She's apparently sticking around town for a bit. But you do not need to feel pressured to see her if you don't want. She has already been warned quite clearly that no means hell no when it comes to you."

Blaine smiled softly. "Pepper or Natasha?"

"Actually both," Tony answered. "You got a lot of people looking after you, kiddo. You have a lot of people that care."

"Yeah," Blaine said looking at the grinning Santana and Sam. "I know."

"Great, then I don't feel bad about telling you that I have to go to Malibu tomorrow."

"Wait, what about mom?"

Tony winced. "Yeah, that was an unexpected wrinkle in the plan. I did not see that one coming. Hey, don't give me that look. Think about what I have to suffer through. Pepper wants me to meet with this think tank guru guy from some stupid company named Advanced Idea Mechanics. I was bringing Bruce with me but then Puck wanted to go and die and the other one got frozen. Now Bruce is staying here and I'm going to be bored and alone."

"My heart bleeds for you, father. Really. Because I still have to deal with MOM!"

"I know you'll do well," Tony said, rising to his feet and ruffling Blaine's hair. "Don't forget, you got your uncles here. They're more than willing to kick ass for you. And you also have your own version of the super friends over here with even more aliens than before."

"I thought Uncle Bruce told you not to tease us about the whole alien thing," Sam chided.

"Oh, Sammy. It's like you don't even know me sometimes!" Tony said before planting a kiss on Sam's forehead and sauntering out the lab. Before he was completely gone, Blaine called out to him. "Yeah?"

"Be careful, Dad. Try and stay out of trouble."

Tony scoffed. "I'm meeting with a bunch of nerds that want to use my brain for their brain cult. I'm looking at a couple of days of getting a little quality time in with sand and sun while you people slosh around in snow and slush. I'll be back in a few days."

Blaine nodded and forced a smile. He didn't know why he was suddenly gripped with fear. His father leaving for a business trip was not a big deal. It was all part of the deal when you had businesses on both coasts. While Pepper was the CEO and the actively involved responsible leader of the company, Tony's input was occasionally required. So really, this was not a big deal. Tony would be back in a few days. There was nothing to worry about.

* * *

Something was wrong with Puck. Santana was well aware of the fact that something being wrong with Puck was pretty much standard operating procedure at this point but that didn't change the fact that something was wrong with him. And that something was pissing her off. Because she didn't know what to do about it. Ever since his return from the dead a few days before, he was a little… off. Well, actually more than a little. He spaced out frequently. It was hard for him to focus on anything for extended periods of time. He constantly had headaches and complained about things being too loud. He occasionally saw things. And that right there, that was another huge red flag for her.

She was willing to write off the whole purple eyes, burning wings, and Skye quaking comments but the fact that he sometimes looked at Bruce as though he could see the Hulk and occasionally at his own great-grandfather like he saw the 90-pound sickly man he was before the serum made her worry. Bruce assured them all that any brain damage he experienced from basically dying should be healed within the week. But if anything, Puck seemed to be getting worse as the week wore on. There were very few people in the Tower that he could look at without seeing something else. So far Clint, Tony, and Pepper before they left, Cooper, Jane, and Darcy were the only ones. He was even having a hard time looking at Blaine. Another red flag.

Something had to give because it was obvious that he wasn't dealing well with any of the things that were happening to him. The whole point of him being off from training was so that he could relax. Yet, none of that was happening. So with that in mind, she set off to find her best friend. She knew she wouldn't find him in the Infirmary, a fact Bruce would be none too pleased about when he found out. She bypassed all the usual thinking spots he favored and instead walked into her room. There huddled up on her window seat was the subject of her constant concern. She climbed up and sat beside him.

"Bruce is going to murder you this time," she said, finally breaking the quiet between them. "I just managed to talk him down from strapping you in last time. And here you are, escaping again. You truly are following Clint's footsteps, huh?"

Puck snorted softly. "I know. I just… I had to leave."

"Talk to me," she ordered gently. He let out a shaky breath before shifting so that he was leaning into her side. She wrapped her arm around his shoulders, letting her fingers brush through his hair. "Now I know you're not okay. You never let me do this anymore. You haven't let me do this since you got out of juvie. I always have to wait until you're sick or unconscious. And god, that sounded way less creepy when I said it in my head." He snorted, settling further into the embrace.

"I stopped letting you because you were always trying to braid the Mohawk back then. Don't think I don't know that you still want to braid my hair. I keep telling you I didn't grow it out for you to play with," he mumbled against her neck. She laughed quietly.

"It's not my fault. I miss the 'hawk but I have to admit you would look adorable with cornrows. It would totally help you look even more vaguely ethnic."

"You're still evil."

"Yet you still love me."

"Always," Puck replied seriously.

"Same for me," she admitted, resting her head against his. Her fingers now brushing against his arms. "Now talk to me, Noah. Tell me what's happening."

He took a deep breath and slowly pulled away from her. She watched as he reluctantly drew his gaze upwards to meet her gaze. They were in the fifth grade when they met for the first time. She's seen those eyes pretty much every day since that moment. So she thought she knew them. But in the moment when their eyes met, she didn't recognize him at all. The hazel orbs with their flecks of green, brown and gold seemed to shift to a chilling blankness she had never seen before. But only for just a brief moment. It was as if he was seeing more than just her. But the moment was over before she could begin to process what she had seen. Suddenly his normal expressively colored eyes were back and he was looking away from her again.

"What did you see?"

"It wasn't just your eyes this time. All of you was surrounded by purple," he answered quietly. "It was in your hands. You hair. Everything around you was purple. And I saw you floating and watching as a city burned with purple."

Santana leaned back. "Oh," she murmured. "Well, I actually don't have a comeback for that one. I mean what am I supposed to say there?"

"I don't know. You think I know what's going on with me?" he snapped, looking up again. The shift happened once again and he quickly looked away. "Bruce said that my body chemistry completely changed after… you know. He said that it's slowly going back to normal but I'm starting to think that…"

"Think what?"

"I'm starting to think that this is how I'm supposed to be," he replied. "That when my body finishes healing I'm going to go back to how I used to be. And that's not right. That's not who I really am."

"And you think that seeing things and living in fear of looking your friends and family in the face is how you're supposed to be?" she asked, not mocking but just confused. "I don't know what the hell this whole alien DNA thing means if it even means anything. You heard Thor. The Kree might've come here but they didn't think any of their experiments were a success. True, we got alien genes but I think that's all there is to it. We're all long past the age of puberty. I don't think we're going to suddenly change after all these years."

"Not yet," he muttered. "But it will happen."

Santana chewed on her lip. Her mind drifted back to that night on the roof of Breadstix where Brittany said she was waiting for them for so long. Brittany knew, or at least had an idea, that something wasn't quite human about them. She had known it for a while. Thor admitted that he could sense their otherworldliness as well. Santana knew that it was more than just a little likely that there were some more changes in store for them. But she also knew something even more important. She smiled softly as she tilted Puck's chin up, forcing him to meet her eyes.

"Hey, look at me," she said when he slammed his eyes shut. "I know what you've been seeing is scary as hell. But I promise you that it's going to be okay. You know me, Noah. You've seen me before. You've seen me every way possible. So hold onto that. Because that's the real me. Not whatever you're seeing. And even if it is the real me that I could become one day, that's not who I am now."

She waited with baited breath for him to open his eyes again. Finally she saw them slowly flutter open. The shift happened again but he swallowed and kept looking at her. She felt his relief even before she saw the smile on his lips. He put his hand on her cheek and smiled brighter than he had in days. She stared into his eyes and knew that he was seeing her. Not purple Santana who let cities burn but just her.

"Hey," he whispered.

"Hey," she returned his smile with one of her own. She leaned forward so that her head rested against his. "It's going to be tough but you can do that with everyone. You know us. You can see past what your mind is telling you. And if you can't, just look at me until its better."

He sighed softly. "That might make us more than a little codependent."

"Dude, we so bypassed that the moment I felt you die." He winced. "Sorry. Probably kind of a sensitive subject, huh?"

"No, that wasn't for me… I'm sorry, you know? That you had to feel that too. It wasn't… it wasn't pleasant. I'm sorry you had to feel that too."

"You're seriously apologizing because I felt the residual pain of you being electrocuted and dying?" she asked, shaking her head with a fond smile. "You're special."

"I have my fair share of issues," he admitted with a huff of laughter. Santana took his hands in her and squeezed lightly.

"We're going to change, Puck. You know it and I know it. But for right now, let's just be who we are and worry about the potential alien DNA related issues later. Can we try that?"

"I think we can."

"Awesome!" Santana grinned, pulling away. "Now we have been talking long enough for the others to have finished setting up the makings of an awesome movie night by your bed that you should actually be in right now."

"But bed is boring," Puck whined even as he let her pull him to his feet.

"Yes, but bed helps you heal faster so you can stop seeing all your friends and family as anything other than what they appear to be at the moment. Speaking of that, what do you see when you look at Blaine?"

Puck's brow furrowed. "It's different. I see the potential for something but it's not like what I see what you guys. Like there's something there and it's just waiting to wake up."

Santana frowned. "That doesn't sound good."

"I don't know," he shrugged helplessly. "This could all mean something or nothing. I really don't know, San. But I just know that it scares the hell out of me."

She exhaled and forced a smile on her face again. She didn't even need to look into his eyes to know that they shifted and he probably saw right through that. The sooner his brain fixed whatever bit of his alien crap that was peeking through the better. Because this wasn't working for her. He already saw through the vast majority of her issues on a good day. This never being able to get anything past him wasn't going to work. He definitely needed to fix that.

"It's not like I can help this," he griped. His eyes widened. "You didn't say that out loud. I heard you but you definitely didn't say that out loud. That's the fourth time that's happened."

"Nope!" she yelped. "We're not doing this! Bruce said your brain was fixing itself. That's our story and we're sticking to it. You cannot tell what a person really looks like or will look like just by looking at them. You cannot read minds. None of this is happening. What is happening is you getting your ass back downstairs where we're going to watch Disney movies and snuggle with the rest of our idiot family and the strays we keep collecting until the world makes sense again."

"We're part alien, San. That's going to take a whole lot of Disney and snuggles."

"We're starting with  _Snow White and the Seven Dwarves_  and working our way through every single animated movie up to  _Tangled_. Also Fitzsimmons and Skye are here. So we got a lot of people to snuggle with. I think we're good."

Puck twisted his lips. "Yeah, that might actually work."

* * *

Steve ran a hand through his hair as he tried to process what Bruce was telling them. It wasn't so much the science part. Contrary to Tony's belief, Steve really was adjusting to the 21st century and all of the technology and science attached to it. That was in a large part due to his grandchildren. They were a huge help. No, the part he was struggling with was how this could be happening to one of said grandchildren.

"Once more from the top?" Bruce suggested, patience and understanding evident in his tone. Steve nodded solemnly. Bruce cleared his throat and pulled up the slide. There were three separate readings on there. "On the top are the results of the physical Noah had a few weeks ago. They're comparable to every reading we've taken since we met him in May." He moved his finger down to the drastically different looking picture. "This is Noah's readings after he was revived. As you can see everything has changed. It's almost as if his entire genetic signature has been altered albeit temporarily."

"You think this has something to do with the whole alien thing?" Clint asked, looking both at a pensive Thor and Bruce.

"I do. I examined the Taser that Seth used on him. That thing was packing electricity comparable to Thor's own lightning when he's having a very bad day. The Other Guy has been on the receiving end of those bolts a few times and it's been enough to sting him. It should've killed Noah. And I don't mean temporarily stop his heart. Every artery in his heart should've exploded. Not to mention, Santana said that he left to get Donnie at least twenty minutes before they got to the room. That means he was dead anywhere from five to ten minutes. He should've been brain dead at the very least. There shouldn't have been anything to revive."

"But he wasn't brain dead and his heart was fine," Natasha pointed out. She tilted her head to the side. "You think that when he died, it wasn't so much him that came back but the alien part."

"I believe that his body was so badly damaged that not even the super soldier blood could save him and his previously dormant DNA started to activate. It's healing him. And as he heals, it's starting to recede. His readings are stabilizing and returning to his normal post electrocution baseline."

"That's a good thing, right? I mean we want him to be normal again. Right?" Cooper inquired, looking worriedly between everyone in the room. "It is a good thing, right?"

"It is," Bruce assured him. "It's just that with the dormant DNA surfacing there were some… side effects."

"That's what we're calling them?" Darcy muttered. "He's seeing things when he looks at people. Things that no one else sees. And I'm pretty sure he's hearing thoughts. Because he's definitely been responding to things that no one else is hearing."

"I'm aware," Bruce sighed. "Best I can tell, when he sees things it's not that he's hallucinating. It's almost like his eyes see through illusions. A slip in reality, if you will. Noah is able to see The Other Guy when I'm like this and he can also see me when the Hulk is out. He also sees Steve Rogers before he became Captain America. I can only imagine it's the same with his hearing. I don't think he's reading minds so much as hearing things on a different level than what the average person can hear."

Steve chewed on his lip anxiously before sitting up straight. "So then we have to believe that what he's been seeing when he looks at Sam, Santana, Skye and Donnie is an indication of what they would be going through should their DNA become active."

"So Santana is going to be purple and Sam's going to have wings that are occasionally on fire. Heh, Sammy really will be a Fire Bird," Clint snickered to himself from his perch in the corner. Despite the gravity of the situation, Steve found himself smiling as well. Which judging from the smug tilt to the archer's lips, that was most likely his intention. Clint might be act like a brat about 40% of the day but he was an amazing friend for the rest.

"So what are we going to do about it?" Steve finally asks.

"We're not going to do anything about it," Bruce shook his head. "It's dormant for the most part besides this one fluke incident. I don't think any of them will be too eager to piss Thor off enough to zap them. Not that you would do it, of course." Thor tipped his head in Bruce's direction. "So aside from that, they're still the same kids they were before we knew anything about aliens. And we're going to let them stay that way for as long as possible."

Steve wanted to protest but Clint was fiddling with one of the computers in the lab they were having their secret meeting in. It took a minute but the archer found what he was looking for. It was security camera footage of the Infirmary… which now strongly resembled a lounge. Puck was back in his bed with Santana on one side and Blaine on the other. Sam was sprawled out in an armchair beside the bed with his legs propped up on Blaine's lap. Skye and Donnie were sharing a beanbag chair that Steve was certain didn't exist in the Tower prior to this moment. Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons were squashed together on another mysteriously procured beanbag chair. And Brittany was present via Skype in the background. They were watching some Disney movie that went back as far as he did. The scene made him smile faintly.

"Yeah, we do nothing," he agreed. "We just keep any eye on them like we always do. Hopefully we'll see whatever could make them change permanently before it happens."

Darcy rose to her feet, clapping her hands together in the process. "Well, now that the boring adult stuff is done. I'm going to down there before they switch to  _Bambi_. Noah always cries when Bambi's mom dies. His tears amuse me."

Steve snorted in faint amusement at his great granddaughter's antics even as she flounced out the room with a snickering Cooper in tow. He should probably stop her from torturing her cousin but he didn't. Because Darcy's sisterly and affectionate teasing was the return to normalcy that they were all longing for. This latest twist in their lives took a lot of out of all of them. Steve knew that they were definitely all looking forward to a little downtime to recover.

" _Agents Romanoff and Barton, you have a call from Agent Coulson_ ," JARVIS announced just as their meeting was winding down. Clint and Natasha exchanged looks.

"Can you patch it through to my room?" Clint asked.

" _Agent Coulson has requested that as many Avengers be present with as few of the 'kids' as possible_."

Steve felt a pit in his stomach. This was sounding less and less like it was going to end well for them. He glanced around the room. Five out of the six Avengers were assembled. He was going to go out on a limb and assume that something was going on with Tony. Figures, they let him out of their sight for three days and chaos ensues.

"Phil, what's happening?" Clint asked once his mentor's face was present on the screen. Ordinarily their unofficial handler was pleasant during calls but today his expression was grim. That definitely wasn't helping the pit in his stomach.

" _Turn on the news. Any station_."

It was worse than he could've ever imagined. They had all heard rumblings about the Mandarin but were assured that this was not an issue for the Avengers or even SHIELD. Steve had his feelings on that but he respected that they were being told to keep their distance. So far, it hadn't impacted any of the team outside of a lingering sense of guilt that a terrorist was allowed to act without repercussions. But apparently that changed last night. Last night Happy Hogan was injured in a bombing connected to the Mandarin. In typical Tony fashion, he hadn't informed any of them and was instead off on a vengeance quest.

"Did he seriously just give away the address to his Malibu mansion on live news and basically dare a terrorist to come get him?" Bruce asked, dryly.

"Tony is an idiot," Natasha muttered. "Let me guess, SHIELD is sitting this one out too?"

" _Hardly_ ," Phil snorted. " _Suit up, you and Natasha are to get Stark and Pepper out of there before the Mandarin shows up. No going off script, Clint. This is a simple extraction. You'll be meeting with your backup in about ten minutes_."

"Backup? Who exactly is this backup?" Clint asked suspiciously. Phil glanced down at his desk. Clint groaned. "Come on, Phil! Not Ward! What did I ever do to you to deserve this?!"

" _If it helps you feel any better, he had the exact same reaction when I told him that you were coming along on this mission. You have nine minutes now_." Clint rose to his feet muttering under his breath the entire way. Natasha trailed after him not even bothering to hide her amusement. Steve was beyond happy that he didn't have to deal with Clint and his ongoing rivalry with Grant Ward. Although that did beg the question of…

"So what exactly are the rest of us supposed to be doing?"

"You, Captain Rogers, Dr. Banner and Thor, have the hardest job of all."

"What's that?"

"Dealing with them," Phil pointed to something just behind the three men before disconnecting the call. Steve whirled around not at all surprised to find an anxious looking Blaine, worried Sam, pale faced Puck and completely and totally over it all Santana standing in the doorway of the lab watching them expectantly.

On second thought, Steve really wished he was with Clint and Natasha now.

* * *

Grant Ward was a few days shy of his eighteenth birthday when John Garrett showed up at the juvenile detention center he was being held in until it was time for him to transfer to a maximum security facility. At the time, he was willing to accept any and everything the man offered if it would get him out of jail. Although the weeks and months he experienced following his discharge made him question his commitment to that any and everything resolve. He was loyal to Garrett. The man saved him from becoming just another number in the system. He would always be grateful. But sometimes he… struggled with the nature of their relationship. He struggled with the commitment that Garrett required and expected of him. He struggled the most in the moments when he looked at Phil Coulson and his own teenage felon, Clint Barton.

Clint was recruited into SHIELD almost a year after Ward. Given the connection between their respective handlers and the barely a year age difference between them, many thought that they would click and be friends. That couldn't be further from the truth. Clint was an immature brat at best and a total weirdo on his worst days. But despite that, there was still something about him that drew people in. People tended to overlook the red flags that told you not to invest in him emotionally. A few people actually made it past those walls. Ward… was not one of them. Not that he wanted to be. He disliked Barton practically from the moment he met the archer. And it had nothing to do with the fact that he still looked like an underfed, abused puppy despite having lived with Phil and his mother hen act for a solid week. It had everything to do with the fact that he lived with Phil for a week. He moved into his own apartment shortly after that but two years later, he was living with Phil again. Hell to the best of Ward's knowledge, Clint only moved out when he thought Phil died.

Ward was mature enough to recognize when he was jealous. He understood that on a fundamental level he was jealous of the relationship between Coulson and Barton. They were close. They was an open familial affection between the pair. It wasn't odd to find that Coulson sneaked care packages to Clint while they were on missions. Actually, Ward was pretty certain that it became a game to see how long it would take Phil to get some random gift to the archer in some impossible location. And while he verbally scorned the close bond between handler and asset, Ward was able to privately admit that he wished Garrett would be more like Coulson sometimes. He wished that he would be more of a person to his handler and less of a… weapon or tool to be aimed and fired. Phil respected Clint. He listened to his opinion. The proof of that was Natasha's entire career within SHIELD. It was Clint that defied orders and begged to have the assassin brought in. At the time, it was viewed as a huge debacle but time proved that having Natasha on the side of SHIELD was one of the better decisions of the agency. And it was all because of mouthy, bratty Clint Barton.

He really despised that guy sometimes. Mostly in times when the runt managed to show him up. Or in times when he proved that despite the fact that he lacked a formal education and his longest job experience prior to joining SHIELD was as a teenage carnie with a criminal record, Clint Barton was one of the most intelligent people Ward ever met. And Ward had the… experience of meeting Reed Richards so he knew about smart people. Another thing that Ward hated was that no matter how weird Clint was, he was still better able to connect with people. People like the frantic, and more than a little pissed off son of one Tony Stark.

"Kid, believe me, I get it," Clint said, running a hand over his face. Ward noticed that his fingers lingered on one spot in particular before he glanced back at the screen. "I'm going to keep him safe, I promise. I will bring his stupid ass back there and you can feel free to kick it as much as you want. Hell, pretty sure that all of us will help you."

" _I'm definitely helping him!"_  Lopez, one of the new SHIELD (and probably the Avengers) recruits, and apparently close friend of Blaine Stark, chimed in the background. Blaine turned to look over his shoulder at his friend before looking back at his "uncle" staring at him from his own screen on the Quinjet currently flying to Malibu. " _It's bad enough that we have to keep you and your protégé over here under 24/7 watch. Now we need to add Uncle Tony to that list?"_

"Hey," Clint gave a token protest.

"It's true," Natasha called back. "Don't be mad because she speaks the truth."

" _Word_ ," Lopez agreed with a toothy smile. And then her laser-like gaze was focused on Ward who really thought he was out of view of their camera. Clearly he was wrong. " _And you, Agent McDouchebag, I'm trusting you to bring our family back safe. And because I know you're emotionally stunted, that family thing does include you_."

"Me?" Ward asked, trying to keep the surprise out of his voice. He had a reputation to uphold after all. "What do I have to do with your little 'family' thing?"

" _You are dating Skye, aren't you? She's pretty much Clint's sister at this point,"_  Blaine added to the unfolding madness, smiling almost against his will. There were snorts of laughter he recognized as Puckerman, Gill and the blonde teen that Puck claimed was one of his seemingly endless best friends.

Ward rolled his eyes while Clint looked contemplative. Contemplative was not an expression that anyone wanted to see on Clint's face. The archer was downright deadly when he was simply following his instincts and impulses. He was a force to be reckoned with when he actively thought about something. Thankfully shortly after Blaine's comment, Clint disconnected the call. It was for the best really as the gathered teens were still too busy laughing at Ward to be of any use.

"How are they?" Natasha asked.

"Okay for now," Clint reported, rubbing idle circles on the bridge of his nose.

For a brief second, Ward could see the weariness on the slightly younger agent. While he was ignorant of the exact details of what happened, Ward knew that there was a majorly heavy conversation between the director, Coulson and Clint just a few days ago. It apparently took its toll on the archer because Phil was in even more overprotective mode than usual. Then add in the fact that his protégé was killed and then subsequently revived and Iron Man decided to declare war on the Mandarin… yeah, Ward could tell that Clint was not having a good week.

Ward frowned taking in the fine lines that formed on the corner of Clint's eyes. It seems that a bad week was the least of his problems at the moment. Ward reached into the travel bag he stashed on the plane and pulled out a small, orange pill bottle. He throw the bottle at Clint knowing that the other man would catch it even before it hit.

"What's this?" Clint asked, turning the bottle over in his hands.

"Your migraine medicine… what's it look like?"

"Why do you…."

"Coulson gave it to me. He said you were probably too dumb to remember to pack it yourself." The sheepish flush spreading across Clint's face proved that to be true. Ward really didn't get how the man managed to survive on his own for so long before SHIELD came along. Oh wait, he was in juvie too. Never mind.

"How'd you know I was getting a headache?" Clint asked around a mouthful of water. He took a huge gulp and swallowed the water and presumably the pills as well. He leaned back in his seat, resting his head against the cushioned surface.

"You're seriously asking me that? I've only known you since we were teenagers. You used to get them really bad before the Infirmary got you on the right meds. I learned to pay attention to you. You didn't know when to stop then either."

Clint nodded, wincing slightly with the motion. He sank further into the seat, closing his eyes, clearly waiting for the meds to kick in. "The price I pay for awesome eyesight."

"And I just thought that the migraines were your brain's way of reminding you that it exists and you should use it every now and then."

One slate blue eye opened slowly and Ward was surprised to see Clint's lips twist into a smile. Ward was even more surprised when he found himself smiling as well. The archer shook his head as gently as possible.

"Do you remember the five minutes when we didn't hate each other?" Clint asked quietly. "When I first joined SHIELD and I didn't start running my mouth."

"Yeah," Ward sighed. "I remember."

And he did remember. The hatred for Clint didn't start right away. There literally was a five minute period of time when they first saw each other that they connected. Seventeen year old Clint with his small frame, wounded puppy look and super thick emotional defenses reminded Ward so much of his younger brother, Thomas. The one that he…. Yeah, Thomas. Needless to say that it only took a matter of minutes for that resemblance to turn to bitterness. To be fair, he later learned that Clint apparently saw his own older brother in Ward. So there was an animosity on both ends that kept their rivalry burning for years. Still there were these... moments. Moments when they weren't trying to insult or kill each other.

"Grant?"

Ward was startled out of his thoughts at the use of his first name. It had been so long since they stopped using real names with one another… at least out loud. He glanced over the younger man who was still reclining in the chair with his eyes closed. The pain seemed to be subsiding. That was just as well because Ward had no idea how to even begin dealing with Tony Stark. He was just here in case the Mandarin attacked before they managed to get the man out of the house.

"Yeah, Barton?"

Clint cracked one eye open again. "Understand I'm only saying this because the painkillers are working… but you're not a terrible human being. And I actually semi like you."

Ward snorted. "That was almost romantic. Thanks."

"I'm serious," Clint protested. "Something is coming. I can feel it. And I just… I feel like there is going to be a line drawn in the sand at some point. I want you to think about what side you're going to be on when that line is drawn. Pick your loyalty."

Ward felt his blood run cold. Did the archer know about him and Garrett? Is it possible that he knew about who, or rather what, was really running SHIELD these days?

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ward lied effortlessly.

"Okay," Clint shrugged with one shoulder. "Just remember that we're family for a lot more reasons than you wanting to sex up Skye. We survived growing up around Nick Fury. That is a hell of a bonding experience right there."

Ward laughed despite himself. Clint had a point. There were several times when they were first starting out that he thought the director was going to kill them both. While Nick was definitely more tolerant of Clint and his idiosyncrasies, he still got annoyed with them both usually leading to more moments between the pair.

"If you boys are finished with your girl talk," Natasha called out from the front. "We're here. So get your heads in the game."

"Yes, snookum!" Clint cooed, ducking when one of Natasha's many daggers went sailing towards his face. The fact that she accomplished that while also landing the plane was one of the many reasons Ward was never going to mess with the Black Widow.

Ward rose to his feet, keeping an idle eye on Clint. If there were any traces of his previous migraine, it wasn't showing. He was at a loss for whether that was a good thing or not. Clint had a notoriously high pain tolerance. And Coulson wouldn't hesitate to murder Ward if he found out that he allowed the archer to push past his limits. So yeah, this assignment might have been about Tony Stark but he was going to keep a watch on Clint as well. No way he was dealing with Coulson, the overprotective Mother Hen or his partner in quasi parenting, Melinda "I'm thinking of fifty ways to kill you' May. Nope. Definitely not dealing with that.

Once they exited the jet and approached the mansion, Ward found that it wasn't just Coulson, May and Natasha that were overprotective when it came to their resident archer. Natasha had just lowered her hand following a series of obnoxious knocks when Tony Stark himself flung the door open with an annoyed scowl that turned into a look of sad resignation when he saw who was standing on his doorstep.

"Any chance that you guys could just get in your plane and leave?"

"What do you think?" Clint snapped, his voice icy yet controlled. Oh, yeah, he was mad. And it was directed to someone who wasn't Ward. Cool.

"Who's this?" Natasha asked, her eyes focused on a brunette standing beside Pepper in the spacious foyer area. "You basically taunt a terrorist and think that's the right time for company?"

"No," Stark replied, closing his eyes in exasperation. "This is Maya. She's an old friend. She's also very much leaving. Oh, you could give her a ride back to the Tower along with Pepper."

"I am not leaving you!" Pepper yelled.

"You must have lost what was left of your mind if you think we're leaving here without you," Natasha echoed.

"You're an idiot," Clint grunted.

Stark ran a hand through his hair, before glancing up at the ceiling. "Why are you even here?"

"Because we have orders to extract you and Pepper as soon as possible," Natasha replied with the feigned calm that only a master assassin could muster. She crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow gracefully. "What the hell were you thinking? You're taunting the Mandarin? The Mandarin?! Last time I checked, he was a terrorist. A terrorist that even SHIELD has backed off on. And yet you went running your mouth like you always do and basically challenged him to a fight!"

"I don't work for SHIELD," Stark retorted sharply.

"No, but you work with the Avengers! If you were so gung-ho on getting back at the people who hurt Happy, you should've called us!" Clint seethed from where he was leaning up against the staircase railing.

"I know," Tony answered, still looking anywhere but at Clint. "But I thought I could handle this on my own. I didn't want to get anyone else involved. I didn't want anyone else getting hurt."

"Hey, Iron Ass, I've been doing this since I was seventeen. Nat has been doing this since even younger. And even Ward has been around the block a few times. Don't patronize me by acting like you were protecting me. I can take care of myself."

There were several well timed coughs around the room. Seemed that even Pepper was amused by that statement to pause in her previously single minded task of taking out Tony Stark with just her mind. Clint rolled his eyes. Stark held his hands up in a placating gesture.

"Look, Clint, I don't think you're incapable of caring for yourself. Hell, I'm one of the few people that actually saw you fighting during the Invasion. I know what you're capable of. I know you can more than handle yourself against anything. But that doesn't mean that I still don't want to protect you or any of the others. You look after Puck and the other kids, right?"

"Of course."

"And they're capable of handling themselves, right?"

"Yes," Clint muttered through gritted teeth. Ward hid a smile. Clint really was an overgrown man-child sometimes. Explains why he and Stark got along so well. "Okay, I get it. But my point still stands, you're an idiot."

"Never said I wasn't," Stark shot back with a smirk. "So am I forgiven?"

"Only if you help Pepper and I finish packing up your crap," Natasha answered for her partner. Stark opened his mouth but Clint's hand covered it. Natasha smiled in his direction. "We know that you didn't want to involve us but we're here now. We'll help you do whatever it is you're trying to do. We all like Happy too. None of us want to let the person responsible for this get away. But we're going to stop him as a team."

"Fine," he sighed, though they all saw a smile forming. "Let's get out of here. I can fill you in on what I've found so far on the way home."

Clint clapped his hands. "Okay, you heard the man. Ward, you're with the ladies."

Ward raised an eyebrow. "Why am I with the ladies? No offense, ladies."

"None taken," Pepper and Natasha chorused.

"I'm going to help Tony pack up the stuff in the lab he keeps downstairs. If you think his workshop at the Tower is insane, the one he has downstairs is even more bananas. Besides it's been ages since I've seen Dummy."

"Barton, stay away from Dummy. The last time you saw him, he picked up all sorts of bad habits. Now instead of spraying the fire extinguisher, he just throws it! He's become even more ineffective than before!"

Clint's cackle was the last he heard of him as the archer disappeared down the stairs with an annoyed Tony trailing him. Ward looked to Pepper in confusion.

"Who exactly is Dummy?"

"One of Tony's robots," she replied, rolling her eyes. She then turned to Natasha. "Thank you for coming. I don't know if I would've gotten him out of here in time without you."

Natasha didn't reply. Her eyes, like Maya, were locked on the television screen that was playing in the background. The news was on and there was live footage of the mansion where they were standing. Live footage of about a dozen or so aircrafts headed in their direction.

"Clint, they're here!" Natasha yelled, sounding more frazzled than Ward had ever heard her before. Tony and Clint raced up the stairs and were about to cross over to them when the first missile struck the mansion. From there it was a cacophony of sound, heat and chaos.

Ward struggled to keep an eye on both his fellow agents as well as their targeted assets but it was chaos as there was repeated fire on the mansion. One of them really should've stayed with the plane. Oh, well hindsight was a bitch. So was the ridiculously large piece of the stairwell that was pinning Ward to the ground. He saw Natasha ushering Maya towards the door. He tried to call out to her but another strike shook the foundation of the house sending both women crashing to the ground only inches away from freedom. He struggled against the beam that was pinning him down but it wouldn't budge. Until it suddenly did. He was never so grateful to see an armored suit in his life.

"Thanks, Stark."

"Actually," a decidedly non-Stark voice answered. The faceplate lifted to reveal the smiling face of Pepper Potts. She sobered quickly seeing Natasha struggling to get to her feet. "Can you walk?" Ward nodded but was still grateful for the hand she held out to him. He rose to his feet shakily. His legs were bruised pretty badly but not bad enough that he couldn't move.

"Stark and Barton?"

Pepper bit her lip as her gaze flickered to the staircase. Ward stumbled over there determined to yank the two idiots out. He was dimly aware of Pepper moving towards the still struggling Natasha and Maya. Satisfied that at least they would get out, Ward fought through the flames to get to the last place he saw Clint and Tony. He winced as a piece of flaming debris struck him on the face but he continued to trudge his way to the ruins of the staircase.

Stark was nowhere in sight but he did see Clint holding onto what remained of the stairs with one hand. His other hand dangled limply by his side. Ward slid across the floor to lie in front of the younger man. He offered his hand which Clint finally was able to take. But the archer's hands were slick with what Ward could only assume was blood. His grip slipped. Clint managed to look up and meet Ward's panicked gaze.

"Hold on," Ward ordered. "Don't you dare let go."

"Don't really have a say in this," Clint pointed out. "'sides, don't really want to face Blaine when I tell him that I let his dad die."

Stark was dead? Ward managed to clamp down on his emotions fast enough that he didn't waver in his already tenuous hold on the blonde.

"It's going to be okay. We're going to get you out of here."

All around debris continued to fall. He didn't know whether they were still shooting at them or not. But he knew, just as he was sure Clint knew, that only one of them was going to walk away from this. But that didn't stop him from trying his best. Phil Coulson was a truly terrifying man when you hurt those he cared about. He was extra terrifying when it came to blonde archers and brunette hackers. No way in hell Ward was going to back to Phil without Clint. He was going to try his damnedest to pull Clint back up or die trying... He really needed to stop jinxing himself.

"Grant, look out!" Clint yelled. Ward saw the beam falling a second too late. He let out a hoarse cry of pain as one of the ceiling beams fell across his shoulders. His pain tolerance was nowhere near Clint's level. He winced at the pain and felt as Clint's grip grew even looser. Ward's eyes widened as the hold he had on the other man dissolved with another well-timed strike against the building.

"Clint!" he yelled as the man fell into what remained of the basement. Ward coughed as the smoke started to get to him. He tried to push himself to his feet but his back and legs were aching with every step he took. His vision dimmed with each painful shift of his legs to the front door. He could hear the roaring fire but then there was another sound. It was fainter but it was still somewhat familiar. As his legs gave out underneath him, he thought he caught a glimpse of what looked like a shooting star leaving the basement. He had only a second to think that was completely ridiculous before everything went dark.

* * *

A complete and utter disaster. It was a simple extraction. It wasn't even a hard one. They were just picking up Tony for heaven's sake. There was nothing difficult about this. And yet, Tony and Clint were dead. Her partner was gone. Natasha wiped a hand over her face, ignoring the paramedics disapproving comments as her hand brushed against her hairline stitches. She could care less about her concussion. Her partner was dead.  _Clint_  was dead. She took a deep shuddering breath and pushed away from the well-meaning EMT to head to where Ward was still being tended to. They had barely managed to get him out of the building before it collapsed completely. Tony's Malibu mansion was gone and so was the man who owned it.

Seeing that Ward was more or less okay for the moment (he was arguing, he had to be okay), Natasha turned her attention to Pepper. Maya, the woman Tony claimed was an old friend, was standing close by her side. Pepper seemed oblivious to her presence. She was staring at her home with tears in her eyes. Natasha was new to this whole having friends' thing but even she couldn't stand to see the normally pleasant woman looking so broken.

"We were fighting," she said as Natasha approached. "My last conversation with him was a fight. I didn't even tell him that I loved him. I didn't say… I should've told him. Why didn't I say it? What am… what am I supposed to tell Blaine and Cooper?!"

"Pepper," Natasha sighed, moving closer to pull the other woman into an embrace. She didn't know how long they stood there until she felt Pepper tense in her arms. "Pepper?"

Pepper held up a finger as she listened to something that no one else seemed to hear. It was then that Natasha noticed that Pepper still had the communicator from the suit Tony gave her in her ear. Natasha watched as several emotions flit across Pepper's previously pale and drawn face. The most pressing was relief and utter joy.

"They're alive!" she exclaimed before lowering her voice. "That was Tony. He called to say that he managed to get in one of his suits and saved himself and Clint at the last minute." Natasha closed her eyes in relief. She sent a silent prayer to the guardian spirit of fools and idiots before focusing on what Natasha was telling her. "They're stranded for the time being but Tony doesn't want us to come after them. He thinks it would be best if the world keeps thinking they're dead."

Natasha sighed. She wished she could argue with that. But clearly someone went through a lot of effort to take Tony out. It would probably be best if they let that person think that they had succeeded. At least until Tony handled whatever he was planning. At least he had Clint with him. She paused. Clint and Tony out on their own with no access to the rest of the Avengers or SHIELD. Oh, they were both dead and just didn't realize it. She ran a hand through her hair.

"Let's get back to the Tower. I'm sure the news has been broadcasting about Tony's death. Let's give Blaine the good news that his dad isn't dead. Again."

Pepper snorted. "He is starting to make this a habit."

Natasha glanced at the still silent Maya. She didn't know anything about the woman but something seemed off about her. The way she wouldn't leave Pepper's side. The fact that she was even there that night in the first place. No, there was definitely something about the woman that didn't sit right. And Natasha was not about to let her go off on her own until she figured it out.

"Ms. Hansen, you're free to come with us. We can protect you back at the Avengers Tower. We wouldn't want the Mandarin to strike while you were alone."

"Yeah, right," Maya answered as if in a daze. "I have to call my boyfriend. He probably thinks I'm dead."

Natasha chewed on her lip. That feeling of not right was bubbling. She was about to say something when she heard a loud commotion behind her. She cursed herself for forgetting about Ward. The man was almost as medic phobic as Clint. He was definitely as violently medic phobic as Clint and these poor EMTs were not prepared for an angry, hurting SHIELD specialist. Natasha sighed, turning only slightly towards Maya.

"Make it quick and then meet us on the plane."

With that said, she was speeding towards Ward who was desperately trying to fight off the paramedics so that he could get to Clint. The connection between those two was so weird but in moments like this it made her smile. Because despite the fact that Ward could be a cold, aloof, almost crazy bastard most of the time, it was moments like this that reminded Natasha that there was a man underneath all of that. That he was still redeemable.

"Grant," she crooned, coming to stand in front of him. His hazy eyes met hers. Oh, they gave him the good stuff. "Hey, it's okay. Clint is okay. He's not in there."

"I have to… Coulson is going… murder me."

Natasha laughed despite herself. "Yeah, it's okay. I'll talk to him. But Coulson is going to be really pissed if you end up hurting yourself trying to save someone who's already safe."

"Clint is really okay?"

"More or less," Natasha shrugged. "He's alive." Ward nodded before his eyes rolled back into his head and he slumped forward into her arms.

"Miss, we need to get him to a hospital."

"Yeah, we do," she agreed. "But I'm taking him."

"Miss, I can't let you…."

The EMT trailed off as Natasha pulled her last remaining weapon out of her back pocket. She held the unconscious Ward close with one arm while the other was steadily focused on the idiot who was trying to tell her what she could and couldn't do with her teammate.

"I don't think you quite understood me," Natasha said, calmly. "I'm taking my friend here back to the Avengers Tower and I'm going to get him medical attention there. You're not prepared to deal with a man with his skills and his aversion to doctors. So back off and Tony Stark is the only person that dies tonight."

The man looked like he wanted to protest but the no doubt intimidating visual of Natasha with a newly arrived Pepper flanking her caused second thoughts on that subject. He gave a growl before backing away with his partner. Natasha shifted Ward into Pepper's suit covered arms. She gave the older woman a grateful smile.

"You're getting pretty good at this," she commented.

"Maybe I should make this a permanent thing," Pepper mused as she and Natasha walked towards the plane where Maya was already waiting, seemingly done with her phone call. "I don't know if I trust her."

"Good," Natasha answered. She schooled her features into a more playful expression as they approached the other woman. She didn't know what Maya's agenda was but the woman clearly had one. No, for now she was going to play this as casual as possible. "Seriously, Pepper. Maybe we should give you a spot on the team. You could be Iron Lass."

"I'm thinking I like Rescue better."

Natasha wrinkled her nose. "Nah that would never catch on."

* * *

Maya watched as the other two women bickered playfully. A part of her wished she could joke with them but she had to stay on target. She thought it was all over the minute the mansion collapsed. That is until Pepper received the call that probably saved all of their lives. Tony was alive. He was alive but still apparently investigating the Mandarin. That was fine. Because that would lead him right back to where she and her employer wanted him. Initially she was thinking that Pepper would be her leverage if Tony didn't want to help them. But her employer gave her an even better incentive. She didn't know how to feel about it. She was already having difficulty with the concept of kidnapping a grown woman to use as hostage against her boyfriend. She was really struggling with the idea of kidnapping a teenage to use against his father.

Still Tony Stark was the best chance they had at controlling Extremis and if that meant they had to go through his son, well then so be it.


	13. Closer to the Edge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Clint and Tony bond, Clint proves he's a badass, Maya puts her plan in motion and Tony meets the real force behind the Mandarin.

The steady and annoyingly consistent beeps were the first thing Clint registered as he struggled his way to consciousness. The second was the pain centering in his left shoulder. He frowned as antiseptic and chemical smells invaded his previously blissful darkness. One eye cracked open slightly and closed just as quickly against the harsh light overhead. Super bright blinding lights, beeping and chemicals…. Damn it, he was in the hospital. Again. He knew he was on the good medication judging by his somewhat slow reactions to his environment as well as the fact that his shoulder was only a dull ache. His head was also throbbing. But he couldn't remember what he was doing that led to those injuries. The last thing he remembered was sitting in the Tower talking about the kids. And now… now he was...wait, no. Tony. They were supposed to get Tony. But then they were attacked. Then Tony fell and he... he…

"Hey," a voice sounded from somewhere around him. The voice moved closer to him. Close enough that he heard the words over the increasingly more shrill beeps. "Hey, hey, it's okay. You're okay." It wasn't the words but rather who was behind them.

"Tony," Clint mumbled. He wasn't sure if he was calling for his friend, checking on his wellbeing or acknowledging that the person beside him was in fact Tony. He didn't know anything at the moment. Everything was starting to be too bright, too loud, and too sharp. And then a hand was covering his and everything ground to a halt. The panic fading slowly, allowing his senses to return to normal.

"Easy, Feathers," Tony said, squeezing the hand Clint held in a death grip. "We're both safe and in relatively one piece. We're okay."

"Tony?"

"Yeah, it's me. Or actually it's not. According to the ID you had in your pocket, my name is Thomas Anderson and you are my adorable baby brother, Carter. I don't know whether to be happy your paranoia thought to provide fake ID or to hate you for even remotely associating us with Step Stan."

Clint snorted, feeling his ribs protest with even that slightest of movement. Still, he was amused. He just wished he could've been conscious to see the look on Tony's face when he handed over the fake IDs. It was a last minute decision to grab them when Phil made the call. He didn't think there would be a reason for them to split with Natasha, Grant or Pepper, but he learned early in his SHIELD days to always be prepared. That's all. He was prepared… not paranoid. Much. Okay, he was a little. But still….

"It's not… really… paranoia when the Mandarin… the… when," he paused, breaking into a coughing fit. His ribs once again flared with sharp, stabbing pain. Tony helped him into a sitting position. Clint felt the air returning at the change in positions. As the coughing subsided, Clint turned his head to study his friend for the first time since he woke up. Tony looked as horrible as he felt. And that was saying something because he felt like crap. The drugs were wearing off. And on that note…. "Hospital?"

"Are you seriously asking me why I took you to the hospital?" Tony asked incredulously. Clint shrugged. Tony glared. "You were half dead when we crash landed. You wouldn't wake up and you were bleeding all over the place. I'm not like you and Natasha. I couldn't just make a first aid kit out of dirt and rocks and I wasn't about to let you die."

"How long was I out?"

"We landed about twelve hours ago. You've been out pretty much since my entire mansion exploded and died." Clint grinned faintly before he caught up with what Tony said.

"Crashed landed? Where are we exactly?"

"Tennessee."

Clint arched an eyebrow. "The hell are we doing in Tennessee? Where are the others?"

"Hopefully back at the Tower by now. JARVIS is officially out of commission until I can get access to some tools unless Blaine figures out how to get him back online at the Tower."

"So basically we're holding out for Blaine?"

Tony gave him an unimpressed look. "Keep it up, smart ass. Anyway, I left Pepper a message saying that we were alive. I hope she got it. I don't… I don't want Blaine thinking I'm dead. Again."

"You really are making this a habit," Clint pointed out. He shifted, wincing as his chest pulled with the motion. Tony grunted before moving forward to help him lay back down. "Thanks. You never answered why were in Tennessee?"

Tony drummed his nails on the edge of the rail. Clint knew he was contemplating making up some bullshit or just straight up not telling him. He gave his best attempt at a glare worthy of Natasha and Phil. He knew it didn't come close but it was enough to make Tony squirm. Score one for the Hawk.

"When I was doing my initial investigation into the Mandarin, I discovered a connection to a bombing in Tennessee. So I had JARVIS set up a flight plan to go investigate. But then you know…" Tony waved a hand in the air.

"Fire from the sky," Clint murmured. "Okay, so what's the verdict with me anyway? When can we get the hell out of here?"

"You have a dislocated shoulder, moderate to severe concussion, multiple lacerations and contusions, three broken ribs, along with three hairline fractures on the other ribs, a severely sprained wrist, and smoke inhalation."

"Right, so when do we get out here?"

" _We_  aren't going anywhere.  _You_  are going to stay here like a good invalid until Agent comes to get you.  _I'm_  going to do what I should've done before."

"Tony."

"No," Tony held up a hand, cutting him off. "I told you that I didn't want anyone getting hurt because of me back in Malibu and now look! I almost got you, Natasha, Ward and Pepper killed. I'm still not sure what happened with Ward. He wasn't looking good when I left. But I hacked into SHIELD before you woke up. He's not listed as dead. So I'm assuming he's okay."

Clint didn't bother to hide the relief he felt at that. He and Grant may fight but he definitely didn't want the older man dead. So at least there was some good news. He could only assume that Pepper, Natasha and that Maya woman got out as well. If something happened to Natasha, Clint would know. Besides Phil would burn the world down to tell Clint before he found out some other way. So then everyone made it out. Good. Except Tony still looked like the weight of the world was on his shoulders. Aside from a few bruises, Tony looked fine. So it was just guilt and worry about Clint that was dragging him down. Damn.

"Oh, you're awake, Mr. Anderson."

Tony was on his feet immediately, standing so that Clint was slightly behind him. Clint peered around his friend to study the nurse who just entered the room. He didn't look overtly threatening but Clint appreciated the protective gesture from Tony.

"Yeah, just woke up," Clint answered, putting his good hand on Tony's shoulder. He felt the tension drain from his friend as he sank down on the chair he abandoned.

"You have a good brother, Mr. Anderson. He's been by your side since you got out of surgery." Clint smiled in Tony's direction.

"Yeah, he's the best."

The nurse continued to blather on about his injuries. Clint knew he should pay attention but he couldn't. He just watched Tony. Every word that left the man's mouth seemed like a blow to Tony's already wounded soul. Clint wished he knew what to say to get his idiot friend to realize that none of this was his fault. Tony was blaming himself for everything that happened and could happen. He knew right there in that moment that Tony was going to leave. He was going to slip out in the middle of the night and vanish.

"Don't you dare leave me," Clint hissed in Tony's direction once the nurse was gone. His friend was once again standing up, staring out the window and pointedly ignoring Clint. The archer cursed the well-meaning nurse who gave him an extra dose of pain medicine. He could already feel himself slipping away. "Tony, please. Promise me that you're not going to slip out of here in the middle of the night and leave me alone. Okay? Please?"

Tony turned to look at him over his shoulder. "Okay."

"Seriously. Promise me."

"I promise that I'm not going to slip out in the middle of the night and leave you alone," Tony replied with a suspicious amount of sincerity. But Clint didn't have any more energy to fight it. He felt all his aches and pains smooth out as the medicine flooded his system. He hated leaving Tony to brood in silence but he couldn't fight against the blackness that was creeping in his vision. "Go to sleep, Hawk butt."

"Please… don't leave me," he whispered, desperately.

Tony moved from the window to take his seat. He reached for Clint's non injured hand and held it tightly. "I'm not leaving  _you_ , Hawk. I'm keeping you safe. But that's nothing for you to worry about now. I promised I wasn't leaving you tonight and I meant that. So go to sleep."

Clint wanted to argue. He wanted to beg Tony to stay. But his body had other ideas. Clint fought as hard as he could but the call of sleep was too strong. He closed his eyes and gave in, satisfied that Tony was with him at least for now. When he opened his eyes several hours later, the sun was up and beaming through his window. There was a piece of paper on his chest. He didn't need to look to know what it would say.

_Sorry._

The word hung in the air. Clint could only imagine that Tony waited until the first rays of light to slip out of the room. He glanced at a clock on the wall. The sun had only been up for an hour. Knowing the eccentric billionaire as he did, Clint would bet that Phil and several agents, maybe even an Avenger or two, were on their way to the hospital now to collect him. Tony really did mean it when he said he wouldn't leave Clint alone. Too bad, Clint really did mean it when he said that he was helping the idiot track down whoever did this to Happy. He mashed his finger down on the call button.

Within a few minutes a kind, matronly looking woman entered the room. She fussed over his pillows and told him that his brother would be back soon. Clint fought the urge to scoff. Tony was not coming back for Clint. Not until this was all over. Clint knew this. Just like Clint knew that he wasn't going to let Tony be alone. He finally managed to fit a word in edgewise around the woman's babbling.

"I need to sign out AMA."

"Mr. Anderson, I don't think you understand the severity of your injuries. You really need to rest."

"I get that," Clint answered, sitting up with a visible grimace. "But I don't really care. That asshole brother of mine is in danger and I'm going to help him. I know you don't advise my leaving. That's why it's called  _against medical advice_. Now can you please get a doctor so I can get my discharge papers and go?"

The nurse huffed before leaving to find a doctor. Clint took a deep shaky breath before pushing himself out of the bed. He looked around for a sign of his clothes. Figures, Tony took them with him. The guy was smart. But Clint was smarter. He pushed the call button again, not at all surprised when a cranky voice answered him. He smirked.

"You think I could get a pair of scrubs while you're at it?"

* * *

Tony knew it was a mistake to linger around the hospital as long as he did but he couldn't help it. Clint had practically begged him not to leave him alone. He knew it was in the best interest of everyone, especially Clint, for Tony to be a million miles away from the hospital but he couldn't make his feet move. He hung around until he saw the SHIELD issued van pull up in front of the hospital. Several agents poured out of the car, led by an agitated looking Phil Coulson. Tony swallowed the urge to say something. He was already risking too much staying here as long as he had. But at least he knew. At least Phil would be there with Clint. And if he lived through this whole thing, Tony would find a way to make it up to the archer later.

Then again that was  _if_  he managed to survive, which didn't really seem likely at the moment. Because he was going up against the Mandarin with no resources, no JARVIS and now no backup. This was a suicide mission. What the hell was he thinking? He should just turn back around now and beg for forgiveness. Phil would be able to help. Then again, Clint, Natasha and Ward were more than capable of helping and look where that got them. What if something happened to Phil while he was helping Tony? What if he died and this time it stuck? Tony knew that no matter how close he was to Clint (heavy emphasis on was) the younger man would never forgive him if Phil was killed in this revenge scheme of his.

No, he had a plan and he was going to stick to it. He made his way to the car that he… borrowed in order to get Clint to the hospital. He threw the bag with Clint's spare clothes in the trunk next to what remained of his suit and drove off. He had no doubt that Clint would have Phil and the rest of SHIELD on his trail within a few hours. He needed to get as much leg work done as possible before they caught wind of him. That included talking to the mother of the only person to die in the bombing. Walking around the memorial site gave him some insight but he was hoping that the file the woman promised she had would provide further insight.

He checked into a motel under his own fake ID. Like Clint said, it wasn't paranoia when facing off against the Mandarin. He stashed the suit there and ditched his stolen car a mile or so away from town. He made his way into town on foot, all the while feeling like someone was watching him. But the sun was already starting to set, limiting light along the solitary highway road leading into the small town square. Tony knew he was running on pure adrenaline and fumes at this point. He knew that he was most likely imagining that someone was watching him in the first place. He was definitely exhausted if he thought it might've been Clint. He immediately discarded the though. Clint was probably already back in New York with Phil and Natasha hovering over him while secretly plotting infirmary escapes with Puck. Then he would probably join the kids in their efforts to burn through every Disney movie in creation.

Tony's heart stuttered even as he pushed open the heavy wooden doors that led to a surprisingly cozy looking dive bar. The kids. His kids. What the hell was he thinking? He had Blaine and Cooper. He was their parent now. He wasn't just the guy that saw them for sporadic weekend trips and paid a hefty amount in child support. He was their actual parent. And his own stupid and impulsive behavior just put them in even more danger than they were by simply being related to him. Tony shuffled over to the bar and settled heavily down on the one of the empty stools. The place had a decent crowd yet the bar area remained relatively quiet. There was only Tony and the guy several seats down that was slumped across the bar with his bowed head tucked into the corner of his folded arms. He was clearly more than a few sheets to the wind judging by the mildly concerned look the bartender slipped him before placing a glass with a clear liquid in front of him.

Tony didn't know what compelled him to slide over in his seat to get closer to the man. Call it misplaced paternal/fraternal instincts. Call it being a glutton for punishment. But whatever it was prompted Tony to move so that he was sitting on the stool beside the slumped man. Tony was about to ask the man if he was okay or if he needed a ride when the bartender returned placing a drink in front of him. Tony took the glass and sniffed. It was his favorite whiskey. His brow wrinkled.

"I didn't order this."

"No, he did," the man replied, pointing to the still quiet man beside him. "He said a guy would be coming in soon after he did. You fit the description and you got here around the time he said you would. He said you'd be wanting one of these."

"This guy," Tony started, keeping his attention between the bartender and the increasingly more familiar figure still sprawled across the bar. "He say anything else?"

"Yeah, he said to let him rest because he was going to need all the energy he had to help you shake your tail. Also he got the file you were looking for," the bartender was clearly done by this point. Tony tensed. So he wasn't wrong. He was being followed. He was wrong though about it being Clint. That was disappointing.

He picked up his glass, downing half of the drink in one swallow, before turning his attention to Clint. The hospital must've given him the scrubs when he signed himself out. The purple hoodie that was covering the pastel blue scrubs was something he probably picked up along the way. Still, Tony could easily make out the bandages and bruises covering Clint's too pale skin. His right shoulder was bulkier, probably to accommodate the bindings keeping it in place. Tony sighed and put a hand on the archer's least injured shoulder.

"Time to wake up, Feathers."

Clint groaned before shifting his head to look up at Tony. The genius winced as the bruising on his face was revealed. It looked worse in the dim lights of the bar. It was a vivid reminder that Tony failed him. Because Clint should not have been anywhere near Malibu. He should've been fine in New York, safe and sound. Instead he was injured and still trying to help Tony. He ran a hand over Clint's back.

"Hey, brother," Clint mumbled. Tony couldn't help but grin slightly.

"Hey, brother," Tony replied. His voice barely a whisper even as he continued to rub Clint's back in a soothing manner. "What are you doing here? You should be in a hospital."

"Was in one…. I left," Clint's lips twitched upwards. "Had a hell of a time ducking Phil too. I'm so grounded when this is all over."

"Provided we're not dead when this is all over, I think we both are," Tony chuckled, taking another sip from the glass. "Clint… I…."

"I know," Clint muttered. A glassy blue gray eye met his. "But we're a team. We stick together. Especially you and I. Next to Nat, you're my best friend. I'm not going to let you go off on a suicide mission alone."

Tony smiled softly. "Yeah, well next to Bruce, you're my best friend too. So I guess in the interest of moving this journey along, I should just shut up and accept your help, huh?"

"Now you get it," Clint answered. He tensed for a moment. "There's a gun strapped to my ankle. You might want to grab it."

"What? Why?" Tony barely managed to ask before a woman was stalking towards the two Avengers. She barely paid any mind to Tony, instead focusing on Clint who was back to hiding his face in the crook of his arm. Tony bit on his tongue to keep himself from reacting as the woman grabbed Clint's shoulder and pulled him up.

"Where is my file?" she hissed. Clint grinned, not letting even a fraction of the pain Tony knew he was feeling show on his face.

"What file? And are you in the habit of picking on injured men in bars, Ms.….?"

"Agent Brandt," she corrected. "Homeland Security. So give me the file and you can go home. You don't know what you're dealing with here."

"And you don't know who you're talking to," Tony chimed in, hiding the gun he grabbed during the apparent agent's distraction in his jacket pocket. "Let my friend go and no one has to get hurt here."

"What if I want it to hurt?" she cooed. Her eyes glittered dangerously.

"What is going on over here?" a tall man wearing a sheriff badge asked. "Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to let that young man go."

"This is none of your business," Agent Brandt hissed. "Just go back to what you were doing. I'm with Homeland Security." She held up her badge. The sheriff looked unimpressed. Tony was actually impressed himself at the man's casual disregard of her authority. Well, he would've been if the agent that was still holding onto Clint hadn't done… something that caused the badge still in her grip to become super-heated. She swung the too hot metal badge at the sheriff causing him to crash to the ground, already crying from the burning flesh on his face. And it was pure chaos from there.

Tony managed to wrestle Clint out of the woman's grasp, pushing him forward and out of the bar. They barely made it halfway down the street before a car door opened and a man was stepping out. His skin glowed in the same way as Agent Brandt. Because of course there were two glowing fire freaks. Of course there were.

"Please tell me that I'm seeing things," Clint whispered, leaning heavily against Tony.

"Wish you were, kid. Come on. We gotta go. We need to get away from these guys and regroup. Because I finally get it."

"Get what?"

"When is a bomb not a bomb?"

Clint blinked at him before glancing over his shoulder at the man not even attempting to follow them. His skin still rippling with the same fiery effects. Tony could see the moment it all connected for him.

"When it's a person," Clint murmured. "The bombing that injured Happy and the one here…. you're saying it was those guys?"

"Or someone like them," Tony answered. "You got the file from the victim's mom?"

"Yeah. It's in my hoodie."

"Then we definitely need to find someplace to lay low," Tony replied. He propped Clint up against the side of a storefront as he looked around for any signs of Brandt or her partner. He let out a sigh of relief when he didn't see either of them. That sigh turned into one of frustration as he found Brandt standing behind him with Clint struggling in her arms. "Seriously?!"

Clint paused in his struggles to glare at Tony. "It's not like I planned to be the hostage!"

"You mean you didn't?" Tony asked in genuine surprise. He could count the number of times that Clint had been taken hostage or injured during their brief time as a team on one hand but he would eventually run out of fingers and need to start using his other hand and maybe some toes. It was an unfortunate personality defect that he seemed to have passed on to his protégé. Once again, Tony was glad that Blaine was more into the science part being a superhero. Anything to keep him from the Barton effect.

Then again, just as Clint had a tendency to get into trouble, he also had the amazing capacity to get himself out of trouble just as easily. He watched in mild awe as Clint pulled what looked like a handful of marbles out of his hoodie pocket. He threw three of them against the side of the building they were standing in front of before ordering Tony to duck. Clint himself let his body slump down, narrowly missing the marbles on their return path. The three metal balls struck Brandt in the forehead, causing her to fall backwards. Tony held a hand out to Clint, helping him up and back into a supportive position.

"Did you just… kill someone with a marble?"

"With three marbles," Clint corrected as if that somehow made the situation less insane.

"How?"

"World's Best Marksman," Clint answered, even as they turned and started hobbling away. "It's in my SHIELD file and everything."

"But you couldn't even see her. You had to calculate angles and everything in your head in addition to the actual skill needed to make the shot." Tony tightened his hold on Clint's waist. "I think I might actually have to adopt you."

"Pepper keeps telling you that's not a thing. You can't adopt an adult."

"I'm rich. I can do what I want."

"And this is why people think you're an asshole."

"People don't think I'm an asshole."

He could practically hear Clint rolling his eyes. "I'm eighty percent sure that only the Avengers don't think your asshole. And the jury is still out on Tasha."

"Lies!" Tony retorted. "Natasha loves me. You all do. How could you not?"

"God, I hope that's not genetic," Clint snorted.

"Let's hope it is. Just remember, Blaine could always take after his mother."

Clint stumbled briefly. "Yeah, sorry. I forgot. He's pretty screwed on all ends. Poor kid. He was doomed from the womb."

"I hate you."

"No, you don't," Clint said, laughing. The laughter stopped short as a car pulled to a stop in front of them. It was Brandt's partner. His skin flickered with the odd glow even as he studied them with a deceitful calm.

"Going somewhere, gentlemen?"

* * *

Blaine scratched at his nose absently while looking over the notes on how to get JARVIS up and running again. He was almost done. JARVIS was pretty much functional within the Tower. With any luck, the AI would be able to reestablish a connection with his father's suit by the afternoon. It was the only thing keeping him sane at the moment. Almost two days passed since his father's place in Malibu was destroyed on live television. Pepper swore that she got a message from Tony claiming that both he and Clint were alive. Phil swore that he had proof that Tony was alive enough to make a phone call telling him where Clint was before both Tony and Clint disappeared somewhere in Tennessee. That was all well and dandy but Blaine really just needed to see his father for himself. He needed to hear him say that he was okay and to explain why he found having his sons think he was dead was something worth repeating.

"I don't think he meant for this to happen," Puck murmured from the couch he was claiming as his own. Blaine really didn't remember that couch existing in his lab prior to this week. He had a feeling that Bruce put it there especially to keep Puck in one room for more than five minutes. It seemed to be working for the most part. "It's totally working. I've been here for two whole hours."

"Bruce must be so proud," Blaine retorted with a grin. Not even bothering to react to Puck responding to his thoughts anymore. It happened to so frequently that Blaine was wondering how they were going to adjust once it was gone. "How you feeling?"

"You're seriously asking me that?" Puck asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm capable of multitasking," Blaine answered, pushing his chair over to the sofa where Puck was sprawled out. He looked down at his friend and frowned. He was still a touch too pale and the dark circles around his closed eyes weren't going anywhere. "Seriously, I know you're bummed that Phil called in Santana, Donnie and Skye."

Puck sighed. "It sucks but he's right. I'm not going to be of any real help. Even Donnie is already feeling better. I'm still… not. Then there's also the whole 'I can't really look at anything or be around strangers' thing without my brain thinking that's the perfect opportunity to see and hear things no one else can."

Blaine squeezed his shoulder lightly. "It sucks, bro. But Bruce's latest scans show that your brain is pretty much back to normal. I think it's only happening with us because you're so used to all of us. You can see through most of us anyway."

"I guess," Puck mumbled, still keeping his eyes closed.

It took Blaine longer than it really should've to notice that he tended to do that around him as well. At first, he thought it was only the previously identified gifted individuals like Steve, Bruce and the rest of the alien hybrid crew. But then he noticed that Puck tended to keep his eyes closed around Blaine as well. But Blaine knew there was nothing special about him. He was a normal human. But the fact that Puck could see something else in him was… intriguing. Still, he never brought it up. He knew that this particular gift bothered Puck in the first place. He didn't want to….

"Just ask me," Puck said, cutting into his thoughts. "Or better yet, don't ask. I'll tell you. Just… stop thinking about it. Stop obsessing."

"I wasn't…." Blaine trailed off as he caught the first hint of Puck's eyes in days. It was barely a sliver but the same vacant glaze Santana told him about was present. His eye closed. "What do you see when you look at me?"

"Void," Puck answered. His voice quiet. "I look at you and it's like this emptiness. Everything is blank with you."

"That's…. lame!" Puck's eyes fluttered open again. This time they stayed normal. "Santana gets cool purple eyes. Sammy gets wings made out of fire. And I get emptiness?! What the hell does that even mean?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know? But you're the only one it happens with."

"Why can't you see something cool when you look at me?"

Puck gave him a dirty look. "Right, because I have so much control over this?"

"I feel like you do," Blaine retorted, his lips twitching at the absurdity of the argument. It had been far too long since they were able to just relax and be goofy teenagers. "Try again!"

"Why are you yelling at the invalid?" Sam asked as he strolled into the lab. He flopped down on the end of the sofa that Puck wasn't lying on and kicked his legs up onto Blaine's lap. "Bruce said we have to be nice to him while his brain damage heals. Still not sure how he knows what is leftover damage from being dead and what's just Puck being Puck."

Puck arched an eyebrow and glared at his best friend. "Why exactly do we keep you around again, Fire Bird?"

"Stop calling me that, Broken Brain!"

"That's not even remotely catchy!"

"You're both idiots," Blaine snickered.

"Yeah, but we're your idiots," Sam corrected. Blaine gave him a fond look. Puck opened his mouth to say something but his eyes did that all too familiar glazing out. This time a smile quirked on his mouth. Sam narrowed his eyes. "What did you see?"

"Nothing we didn't already know," Puck grinned.

Any retort the pair would've made was cut off by the doors to the lab opening once more. This time, it was someone decidedly less pleasant (both as a person and to look at) than Sam. Blaine repressed the urge to groan at the sight.

"Oh, hello, mother."

Annette Anderson gave what was probably supposed to be a comforting smile to her son but instead merely came off bored and annoyed. She was also holding a tray loaded down with sandwiches and drinks. And that was yet another huge problem Blaine had with this whole situation. With Tony's latest brush with death came a vacuum of power within Stark Industries. The Board of Directors was moving to find some way to wrest full control of the company from Pepper and now Cooper acting as Tony's beneficiary. Annette was initially dismayed to know that she stood little to gain from Tony's death but soon realized that because Blaine was still a minor, she controlled whatever inheritance was coming his way. That meant she was going to play the warm, doting mother until she got what she wanted or he turned eighteen. He couldn't wait to tell her that Tony wasn't really dead… he hoped. Stupid father.

"So it's well after lunch and you boys need to eat!" Annette chirped, placing the tray down on the table beside Puck's sofa.

"You're taking this whole Suzy Homemaker act to another level, Mom. Guess you must be really nervous about that inheritance money." Annette briefly dropped the façade to glare at her son. He grinned. Didn't take much with her.

"It's not an act, Blaine. You're my son and these are your friends. You care about them, so I care about them. So eat up. Especially you, Noah. You need to regain your strength."

"First off, my name is Puck. You don't know me enough to call me Noah. That's for family. Second, I'm not hungry."

Annette rolled her eyes. "Fine, then at least drink something. Dr. Banner insisted on repeating to me almost a hundred times that it was time for you to take your meds."

Puck nodded, sitting up and fishing the medication out of his pocket and reaching for one of the glasses of water. Sam shrugged and took two sandwiches, handing one to Blaine wordlessly. For the next few minutes, there was quiet as the trio ate (or in Puck's case drank) their lunch. Blaine would later blame the calm he normally felt when he was with Sam and Puck for failing to notice his mother watching their every move with unnatural interest. But he finally caught on when Puck suddenly dropped the glass he was drinking from. Blaine snapped his head towards his friend but found that his head felt like it was trapped in molasses. His movements felt sluggish and heavy. Sam was trying to reach for Puck but it seemed like he was having the same problem.

"What's happening?" Blaine asked, even his words felt heavy.

"It's okay, sweetheart. Fighting it makes everything worse," Annette said, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Blaine pushed away from with the strength of a newborn kitten.

"Mom, what did you do?!"

"What I had to do!" Annette retorted, all pleasantries finally gone. "Your father left everything to that stupid bitch, Pepper. She brainwashed you against me. She has you believing that I don't care. That's a lie, Blaine. I have always cared. But fortunately I found someone who is willing to help me get you away from this place. We can get away, baby. We can go home and work on being a family again."

"Who?" he struggled but the word finally came out.

"Me," Maya Hansen said as she walked into the room. Blaine was dimly aware of Sam and Puck making some protesting comment before both were falling, landing on the linoleum floor with a sickening thud. Maya's features softened as she looked down at the pair. "I'm truly sorry for this, Blaine. I really wish it didn't have to be like this."

"It doesn't," he retorted.

"But it does. My employer needs your father to help him with a project. He already said no but I feel like he's going to change his mind when he sees you."

"His father is dead."

Maya shook her head. "No, he's not. I know that Blaine and Ms. Potts were both dying to tell you the truth themselves but in the interest of expediency, I'm afraid I'm going to have to steal their thunder. Surprise! Tony isn't dead. And you're still not getting a dime from him."

"What are you talking about? You said that all I had to do was give them the food with the drugs in it and you would help me get Blaine out of the Tower and on a plane home."

"I lied. Blaine is leaving the Tower but he's going with me. As for the drugs you gave them, it was a homebrew version of the very same virus I need Tony's help to stabilize," Maya reported. "It's got an extra sedative to it. Strong enough to take down even a super soldier. But it's unfortunately even less stable than the original formula. So if you love your son even remotely, you'll shut your mouth and help me get him to the car. Or you can keep whining and let him die. It's up to you."

Annette stared at the woman in surprise. "You said this was to help me!"

Maya shook her head. She pulled a gun out faster than Blaine could register and shot his mother. She gave Blaine a rueful look. "I really don't know how you put up with her. She really was a selfish bitch." Blaine took one look at mother and friends lying on the floor and gave into the darkness that had been creeping into his vision. The last thing he heard before everything went black was Maya apologizing.

" _I'm so sorry_."

* * *

Phil frowned as he watched Santana shifting around in her seat, trying in a vain effort to get comfortable. He knew from personal experience that there was no comfort to be found in those chairs. It's an extra special hell when your loved one was fighting for their lives in the bed beside you. Phil knew that struggle all too well. He was tempted to expense a more comfortable chair specifically for the times when Clint ended up in the same position Sam and Puck were in currently. That damn chair was murder on his back and Clint ended up in the Infirmary entirely too much to say that he was a fully trained agent of SHIELD. Still, he doubted the wait would be any easier even with a more comfortable chair. Phil has played the waiting game many times and in many different places. It definitely never got any easier.

"Hey," he greeted softly as he made his way into the boys' room in the Infirmary. Santana looked up and for a brief moment he saw just how much all of this was affecting her. Tony and Clint were MIA. Blaine was kidnapped by someone trying to get the missing Tony to stabilize a virus that she infected Sam, Blaine and Puck with. Phil still didn't know what the virus was intended to do but whatever it was not agreeing with their hybrid immune systems.

Both were running fevers that were reaching alarming heights. Bruce was working overtime trying to figure out what type of virus it was and then develop a cure. Phil just really hoped that the boys could hold on in the meantime. He wasn't too sure how likely that was given how hard they were both by the virus. Because he apparently now shared the Barton Luck, Puck was naturally hit harder. Well, that and the fact that he still wasn't back to one hundred percent from his own brush with death just a few days ago. Phil stopped short at that thought. Puck died barely a week ago and was brought back to life only by timely intervention of the supernatural sort from Santana. It was the very same thing that saved his life this time around. Or rather it was the very same thing that allowed them to stabilize the two teens and save the life of Annette Anderson. Phil didn't really understand the connection between the two but he knew that he was grateful for its presence.

"How are they?"

Santana ran a hand through her hair. "Their bodies are fighting off the effects of the virus. Bruce said it had regenerative capabilities but its hella unstable. Fortunately, Sammy and Puck aren't totally human. So they're better at fighting this off without the cure. Blaine, on the other hand, he's…."

"He's not. He's human," Phil finished, watching as her shoulders slumped forward.

"I'm so sick of this shit, Phil," she whispered, sounding broken and small. "It's like we can't seem to catch a break lately, especially Blaine and Puck. And it's not fair. Blaine shouldn't be missing right now. He should be here making moon eyes at the other idiot while the rest of us just pretend we don't notice that they're totally in love. But instead, we're here. Sammy and Puck are sick and Blaine is sick and missing. Tony and Clint are just running around in Middle America and that's just a frightening thought because whoa. I'm shocked something hasn't exploded by now. And it's just… it's just not… it's not fair."

"No, it's not," he agreed, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "How about once this all settles, and it will be settled, you all take a break? Take a vacation away from SHIELD and all of this for a little while? I'm sure Tony will fly you all anywhere you wish to go."

"Can't. Training, remember?"

Phil smirked. "I think at this point, you, Donnie and Puck could create your own training curriculum. You all have more than enough field experience. Not to mention an affiliation with the Avengers. Welcome to Level Six."

"Wait, seriously?" Santana looked at him with a hint of a smile twisting her lips. "You're seriously promoting us right now?"

"Seriously. Nick and I were going to talk it out with you, Puck, Natasha, Steve and Clint before all of this Mandarin nonsense started."

Santana's smile grew. She brushed her fingertips over Puck's forehead. "Hear that, Noah? Now you have to get better. We're officially agents of SHIELD. You have to be okay. Because I need a partner that I can trust. And Donnie is still too scared of me to actually question when I do something reckless. So you need to get better"

Almost as if they were waiting for some sort of verbal cue from Santana, both Sam and Puck lurched up with huge gasps of air before turning away from where Phil and Santana were situated to throw up everything they've eaten seemingly throughout their collective lifetimes. Santana grimaced before moving to Puck's side, placing a steadying arm on his shoulders while also rubbing circles on his back. Phil did the same with Sam after notifying Bruce that the boys were awake and vomiting. He held onto the too warm and trembling figure in his arms as Sam continued to violently expel his stomach's contents in a sickening echo of Puck.

"Ugh, gross! Is that a part of your lungs?!" Santana squealed. Phil started to tell her that was medically and physiologically impossible when he made the mistake of looking down.

"Um, yes. I think it could actually be."

* * *

"Hey, Tony. Riddle me this. When is a terrorist not a terrorist? When he's just some weird loser set up to be the face of a shady scientific corporation." He huffed as Thug One punched him harder in the stomach. "That the best you got?"

"Hey, assholes. Why don't you try picking on me? You got a thing for picking on the injured and weak?!" Tony yelled from where he was chained up on the opposite side of the room. Clint looked up to meet his gaze. He could see that the older man was at a breaking point. Clint tried to smile and let him know that he was okay… kind of. But that's when Thug Two felt the need to join the party and punched him on one of his fractured ribs. He bit his lip even as he felt it crack under the pressure. Definitely broken now.

"Seriously, that's all you got?" Clint wheezed. He grinned, knowing that there was blood on his lips. "My teenage niece hits harder than you, Chuckles."

"Enough," a smooth voice interrupted. Clint coughed, spitting blood on the floor in the process. He lifted his head to get a glimpse of the newcomer. But the man only had eyes for Tony. "Tony Stark! We meet again."

"Oh, god. It's you."

The man smiled easily. "Yes, it's me. I'm shocked you remember me."

"Is this another one of your booty calls?" Clint croaked.

"Shut up, Feathers," Tony retorted with no heat behind the comment. "What do you want, Killian?"

"I require your assistance with stabilizing a revolutionary new product. It's called Extremis. You may be familiar with the base structure of Extremis. It was created by our mutual friend, Dr. Hansen."

"I should've known," Tony huffed. "Maya suddenly popping up in my life again. She was either bringing me a love child or working for a psycho. Really wished it was a kid. And as for you, you're the guy that met with Pepper… you're AIM."

"Indeed I am. And as you can see from your investigations, Extremis is unstable. It has a tendency to make some people… well, explode. Maya is convinced that you would be able to help us with that problem."

"Yeah, thanks but no thanks."

Killian shrugged. "Well, I thought you would feel that way. But I have a very good reason why you'll agree to help. Three actually."

Clint watched as Killian snapped his fingers. Several of his lackeys ran forward to turn the previously unnoticed television screen on. Neither Tony nor Clint was left wondering what Killian could have up his sleeve as the screen showed an unconscious Blaine strapped to a bed. The worst part was that his skin was glowing intermittently.

"No!" Tony yelled, struggling against his chains anew. "That's crossing the line. That's my son, you twisted bastard!"

"You want to save your son and the other two? Then help me with the formula."

"Other two?"

"I believe your son refers to them as Sammy and Puck?"

Clint swallowed against the lump in his throat and focused his attention on Tony. He looked defeated before but this? This just lit the necessary fire under his ass. Clint was proud.

"I'll give you some time to think this through. But not too much. The gestation period is usually forty eight hours. Your son only has another thirty six before his body decides to bond with the virus or be consumed by it."

With those final and damning parting words, Killian spun on his shiny stupid shoes and left the room. His grunts followed in his wake leaving Clint and Tony well and truly alone for the first time since they were brought to the Mandarin's base.

"Barton, you ready to stop screwing around yet? Or did you want to keep hanging around?" Tony asked, with a hint of a smirk in his voice.

Clint grinned too before taking a deep breath. Growing up in the circus made relating to his same aged peers a little difficult outside of the big top. But it did come with its fair share of perks. He had yet to meet a binding, handcuff, zip tie or otherwise, that could hold him. He just didn't think Tony was paying attention to that. Figures that he was. Observant bastard.

Clint twisted his extremely sore wrist, slowly loosening the grip that was biting into his skin. He grunted as the loosened cuff released him, sending him crashing down to the ground. He heard Tony call out to him even as pain shot through his chest and arms. For a brief second, the world shorted out and everything was upside down. But he was an agent of SHIELD, he knew pain. He's had worse than this and still managed to pull it together. And that was before some rejected fan boy of Tony's got their family involved. The only thing that would stop Clint now would be death. So he took a deep soothing breath and staggered over to Tony. He made short work of the cuffs holding the older man in place. He helped Tony ease down from his own chains before the room started spinning again.

"That's not good," he mumbled even as he swayed into Tony's arms.

"You need to stop for a minute and get some actual rest," Tony retorted with little heat behind the words. He pulled Clint closer, letting the younger man rest his head on his shoulder. Clint went willingly because Tony wasn't exactly wrong here. He was in need of some serious rest and relaxation.

"What's that saying, 'I'll sleep when I'm dead?'"

"What's that other saying, 'keep it up and you won't have far to go?'"

"Tone, seriously. I'm okay. I could probably sleep for like a month but Blaine, Puck and Sam need us more. I'll sleep when we're all back together and no one is in danger of exploding." He rested only for a moment longer before pulling away to look at Tony. "So you have any idea of how we're getting out of here?"

Tony eyed him carefully. Finally after a few tense moments, he seemed to find what he was looking for. He nodded and helped Clint to sit down on one of the tables lining the walls of the room. He then pulled the forgotten gauntlet from his discarded coat pocket. It was apparently all that was left of the suit that Tony stashed at the motel back in Tennessee. Clint really regretted that they didn't have a chance to go back for the suit. Even broken, it was better than the nothing they currently had. Still, Clint watched as Tony held his gauntlet covered hand up towards the window. Heavy silence settled on the room before Clint finally spoke after five long minutes.

"Uh, Tone? Not doubting your genius here… but… kinda doubting your genius a bit."

"Shut up, I'm working on it."

Clint bit his lip in an effort to hold back the very many questions he had for Tony in that moment. The most important being, what the hell was he trying to accomplish. He was just about to open his mouth to ask again, damn the consequences, when something heavy crashed through the window. Clint watched with wide eyes as the familiar gold and red armor settled on Tony's arm, seamlessly bonding with the gauntlet.

"Holy…. That's amazing!"

Tony winked with a too smug smirk. The look was ruined as the face-plate for the suit came next, slamming onto his face and knocking the older man down to the floor. Clint couldn't help the laugh that escaped as the rest of the suit started flying towards Tony at a quicker rate. Still it wasn't fast enough as the door opened again and Killian joined them once again. Tony aimed one of the repulsors at him and fired. Clint groaned audibly as nothing happened.

"Well, that didn't work," Tony muttered.

Clint rolled his eyes before hopping off the table. His body was not going to be thanking him for this much movement. But he would be damned if he let Killian see any weakness from him. This is the man that ordered that Blaine, Sam and Puck be infected with the same virus that made people explode. He wanted this guy dead in ways he never experienced before.

"While Tony plays with his toys," Clint started, voice eerily calm. "Why don't you and I have a little discussion about all the ways in which you've screwed up. You didn't just piss off the smartest man I've ever met but also the rest of his team. There is no way you walk away from this as the winner."

Killian smiled. It was a dark, ugly thing. "Is that so? Because I appear to be winning at the moment, Agent Barton. I have several pieces of leverage and while I may have angered your team, it doesn't seem like they are here to share their feelings about this matter."

Clint glanced out the corner of his eye to see Tony still tinkering with the repulsor. He groaned. His body was seriously not going to like this. He aimed a punch at Killian's head. The man dodged the blow at the very last second. Clint threw another three successive blows only to watch as the other man slipped past every one of them. He was good at hand to hand. He wasn't Natasha good but he got the job done. Whatever this guy was… it was barely human. He was advanced to a level Clint might've been able to compete with when he was his best. But for now, he was definitely at a disadvantage. He was also about to die. He choked as Killian lifted the archer from the ground with a hand tightly clenched around his neck.

"I would keep you around, little bird, but unfortunately you've long outlived your usefulness to me. Why would I keep you when I have his son?" Killian's skin started to glow and Clint felt the heat searing into his skin. This was going to hurt.

"Clint! On your left!"

Clint grunted and shifted as best he could to the right. He heard the familiar whine of repulsor going off and a burning rush of wind on his side. He opened his eyes as he was let go abruptly. He managed to stay on his feet and could only stare in horror at the gaping hole that was now in Killian's stomach. The man collapsed to the floor with a heavy thud.

"Oh, shit," Clint murmured, feeling his knees go weak. Tony was by his side before he could fully collapse, already checking the hand shaped burn on his neck. "Dude."

"Yeah."

They stood in silence for a moment. Finally, Clint turned to face Tony with wide eyes. "You just killed a guy… for me?"

"If you act surprised, I may actually leave you here to get rescued by the Hulk." Clint laughed, wincing as something shifted painfully. Tony eased an arm around Clint's waist. "Come on, Feathers. We have to figure out where they're keeping Blaine."

Clint nodded and let Tony steer them towards the door. They didn't get very far before Clint heard scuffling noises behind them. He felt Tony tense beside him and knew that the older man heard it as well. They slowly turned in unison to see Killian rising off the ground. The hole in his chest healed with the same fiery glow they were starting to associate with Extremis.

"Gentlemen, if we're all done playing around, I'll take you to your son."

Tony and Clint exchanged a quick glance. It was probably in their best interest to quit fighting. Killian had the resources and the uncanny ability to not die on his side. All Tony had was the suit which apparently wouldn't kill these guys and an injured archer. No, it was definitely in their best interest to just give in to Killian… for now. Once they had Blaine they could form a plan. But for now, they would give up the fight.

"Alright then, Killi. Take me to my son."


	14. Who We Are

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Blaine is likened to a Pokemon and totally evolves, lives are saved and people are saved

Blaine was not, as they say, having a good day. Okay, that was actually the understatement of the century. He was having a horrible, rotten, and no good with a chance of dying day. He grimaced as the virus burned its way through his system. It was an interesting design. From everything that Maya felt the need to share with him while they waited for Killian to bring his dad around, the virus had the capacity to heal. It could even regenerate lost limbs. It could be a medical breakthrough… if it wasn't for the fact that it was dangerously unstable. There were also the side effects. The super strength and the other abilities. Blaine understood the importance of a drug like Extremis… but he couldn't help but feel like it was an attempt to play god. And that rarely ended well.

He heard the raised voices before he saw the faces that went along with them. He sat up as much as the straps on his gurney would allow to see his father and Clint being dragged into the room. Tony was struggling against the men holding him as well as shooting off increasingly more vitriolic statements at his captors. Blaine was about to question why his father was being louder than usual when he caught sight of Clint. The archer was quiet and pale as they dragged him along. He wasn't fighting. In fact, Blaine suspected the tight grip of the big burly minions that AIM employed was the only thing keeping Clint from hitting the ground. And judging by the weary look on his face and the paleness of his skin, Clint looked like if he dropped, he wouldn't be getting back up anytime soon. But everything changed the moment both men laid eyes on Blaine.

"Blaine!" Tony shouted, finally shrugged the men off enough to make it to his son's side. Blaine saw tears welling in his father's matching eyes. He knew he looked the same. "I'm so sorry, kiddo. I never meant for this to happen."

"You never meant to be a super genius who's incredibly good at what he does?" Blaine joked weakly. He was rewarded with a feeble laugh from Tony.

"No, I never meant for you to get caught up in any of this," Tony motioned with his hand.

"I have to say… this is not exactly what I had in mind when I said I wanted to be special" Blaine said, prompting another sad laugh from his father. "I don't blame you for this dad. I know Sammy and Puck don't either."

He felt his father brush a shockingly cool hand over his face. The sadness didn't leave his eyes. "I'm starting to think that maybe your mother was right. Maybe I'm not good for you. Maybe you would've been better off if I never met you."

"Hey," Blaine snapped, dragging his father out of his maudlin thoughts. "I would not be better off without you, Dad. Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me. The only thing that comes close is when you let me live with you full time. So you can just stop right there. Best thing that ever happened to me. Mom doesn't…. Oh, no, mom."

Tony tilted his head to the side. "What about your mother?"

"Maya shot her, Dad. She shot her. Mom was working with Dr. Hansen to drug us. She put the bastardized version of Extremis in our water and our food. She got Sam and Puck too. And then when Mom finally got a clue, Maya shot her."

"What the hell, Hansen?!" Tony roared, looking up at his former fling. The woman at least had the decency to look ashamed. "Trust me, no one in this world wants to shoot Annette more than me. But even I wouldn't do it in front of her kid. Our kid."

"I didn't want to shoot her," Maya explained. "But she was protesting and delaying my escape. I had no choice. Time is not on your side when it comes to Extremis."

"And that brings us to why we're here," a new voice chimed in smoothly. Blaine watched as his father and Clint both tensed. Oh, so this guy was the boss. He was tall, blond and looked smug as hell. Blaine really couldn't wait until they took him down a peg or five. "You will fix the formula or your son and his friends will die."

"I fix this and we go home," Tony said, firmly. Blaine looked between his father and the new douche on the scene. "No games, Killian. I'll fix the formula but that's it. You let us go. All of us."

"Of course," Killian agreed with a wide smile. "I'll even do you a favor. Consider it a token of my complete sincerity." Before Tony could even open his mouth to protest, Killian was pulling a gun out and aiming at the completely surprised Maya. "An eye for an eye and all that."

Maya collapsed to the floor with a heavy thud. Blaine stared at the small hole between her eyes with wide eyes. Tony cursed loudly while Clint slumped further onto the goons still holding him up.

"You're welcome," Killian said after the heavy silence stretched on.

"You seriously expect me to thank you for shooting the only person who could help me stabilize the formula that I need to help my kids?!" Tony snapped.

"You're the great Tony Stark. You really want to try and convince me that you need assistance in stabilizing the formula? You could solve it on your own. Maya would've only gotten in your way. No, she far out lived her usefulness."

Blaine could see his father's brain working a mile a minute. He even registered the part where Tony came up with the solution.

"Killian, if I may," Tony ground out. "There is one other person who could help me. His name is Bruce Banner. He's better at genetics than I am. Plus if you dosed Sam and Puck with this stuff, he's probably already working on it himself. Between the two of us, we can come up with a stable version of the virus quicker than I could alone."

Killian clenched his jaw. "Very well," the man shrugged after a few. "You won't try anything stupid. You know what's at stake. I don't have to threaten you in that regards. But in case you forget, remember that it's not just the life of your son and his friends but also the life of your precious teammate that hang in the balance."

Clint let out a soft grunt as the two thugs finally released him. He slumped down against the gurney where Blaine laid. Killian motioned for the minions to release the leather straps holding him down. As soon as he was free, Blaine scrambled up to make room for Clint to be comfortable. The archer gave him a weak smile in thanks.

"I'm going to fix this, kid," Tony promised, wrapping him in a quick hug. He pulled away and tapped Clint on the forehead lightly. "You, stay awake until I get back. I know you're tired but I need to you stay with us for a little longer. Keep Blaine safe for me?"

"Always," Clint murmured, exhaustion heavy in his voice. As Tony was led away from them, Blaine shifted his focus to the severely injured and still bleeding man half sprawled across the gurney. "Hey, Mini Stark?"

"Yeah?"

"I ever tell you about where I grew up?"

Blaine racked his brain. "No, actually I don't think you did. Was it someplace fun?"

"Totally," Clint cracked a grin. "When I was six, my brother and I ran away and joined the circus."

At first, Blaine was willing to discount that as the blood loss speaking but the more he thought about Clint the more it all made sense. Okay, so maybe this keeping each other alive while they waited for Tony and Bruce to save the day wouldn't be entirely awful. He shifted Clint's head so that it was resting on his thigh. His hand absently brushing through the matted blonde locks as Clint told him the origin story of the Amazing Hawkeye.

* * *

Tony raked a hand through his hair for the fifth time that hour alone. He knew that the tic was annoying Bruce but the older man was smart enough not to mention it. That was one of the things he liked best about Bruce. The man was the quiet counterpoint to Tony's loud chaos. He knew when it was best to speak and when it was best to shut up and avoid all questions. As soon as the video connection was set up between him and the Tower, Bruce was all about science. He didn't comment on the bruises on Tony's face, the obvious stress around his eyes or ask about Clint and Blaine. He simply uploaded the data that he analyzed from the samples he took from the contaminated water and food as well as blood samples from Puck and Sam. He sat back in silence, looking at his own screen as Tony ran through Maya's notes and compared it to Bruce's findings and his own observations.

"We could do it," Tony murmured, breaking the silence for the first time in an hour. He wasn't worrying about Killian overhearing their conversation. Even though JARVIS was still down, Stark Tower was prepared to handle things like unwelcome attention. He knew their conversation was private. It said a lot about Killian's confidence in his leverage over Tony that he wasn't trying interrupt anyway. Smug bastard. "I could stabilize it. I could make it work and leave Killian with the perfect weapon."

" _I don't need to point out all the ways in which that wouldn't end well, do I?_ "

"Definitely don't have to do that," Tony smiled softly. He looked at his friend. "How are Sammy and Noah?"

Bruce gave a tired chuckle. "S _till not back to full strength but doing better than Blaine, I imagine. It's like they have the flu only with more fevers that literally burn. Also coughing up a lung is no longer a figurative term we will accept in this household_."

"Oh, gross," Tony laughed despite himself. "Uh, how's Annette?"

Bruce rolled his eyes. " _She's fine. Santana had another one of her whatever you want to call the thing that lets her know Puck is in danger. We got to all of them in time. Annette is alive and bitching. Which is great because so are Pepper and Natasha. They haven't left her side since she woke up. I finally had to banish Santana to the boys' room. She followed Pepper and Natasha earlier and actually had a notepad out writing down everything she heard. I swear her vocabulary for creative insults just expanded exponentially_."

Tony laughed again, feeling both relief that Blaine's mother was alive and relatively well but also just to hear the antics going on at home. Damn, he really missed home right now. He glanced down at the samples from Sam and Puck versus the sample from Blaine. The virus was definitely having an opposite effect on the two hybrids over Blaine. Their bodies were successfully fighting off the effects of the Extremis. Tony was confident that within a few hours, it would be just a horrible memory for them. But for Blaine, it was becoming obvious that his body would take to the virus but it was a crapshoot whether he would be one of the ones that exploded or not. That's not the kind of chance Tony wanted to take. He needed to stabilize it. He needed to neutralize the Extremis to make sure no one like Killian ever got their hands on it.

"Bruce, what if there was a way that could stabilize the virus completely and neutralize everyone infected with the virus."

" _For that, we would have to have a single subject act as a host for the newly created virus," Bruce mused. "That person would act as a carrier of sorts. They would be able release the cure for the virus and neutralize the others who carry the virus. It will shut down the virus in their systems and render them all normal again._ "

"Would it kill the person?"

Bruce shrugged. " _I don't know. I don't think so. It would most likely mutate within the individual. Could make something better or worse._ "

"Don't know how it could be worse than puking up part of a lung," Tony replied, with a smile he didn't feel. "It was only part of a lung, right?"

" _Yes, it was part of a lung that regenerated shortly after. Trust me, it was still gross. But, as disgusting as it was, it does seem to be having some positive effect on Noah's recovery from his unfortunate brush with death. He's almost back to normal. He hasn't reported seeing or hearing anything abnormal for the past twelve hours._ "

"That's good…" Tony trailed off. He tilted his head to the side. "Bruce, who were the people that Noah was seeing differently?"

" _Uh, Steve, myself, Sam, Skye, Santana, Natasha and, oh… Blaine._ "

"Get him in here?" Tony asked. Bruce arched an eyebrow but called Steve and asked him to bring Puck upstairs. Five minutes later, a confused and slightly irritated Steve was wheeling a pale and gaunt looking Puck into the room. Tony winced. Puck looked he needed to be in bed. Tony didn't want to know how bad he looked before if this was an improvement. Still, Tony leaned towards the screen, noting the alert eyes looking back at him. "Hey, kid. How you feeling?"

" _Like crap_ ," Puck shrugged. " _How's Blaine?_ "

"Kind of the same," Tony admitted. "I need to ask you about what it is you saw when you looked at Blaine."

Puck's brow furrowed but he nodded. " _It was weird. It wasn't like what I saw when I looked at the rest of you. With Grandpa, I see the man he was before the serum. And with Uncle Bruce I see the Other Guy. But with Blaine, I don't see anything. It's blank. Almost like he's waiting for something to come along and wake him up. It's like in Pokémon. You know how Eevee changes depending on what stone you use. That's Blaine. He's Eevee._ "

"Did you just call my kid a Pokémon?!"

" _Yes_ ," Puck replied back with all seriousness. Tony bit his lip to stop laughing but couldn't fight the smile. He felt a little lighter when he saw Puck return a pale imitation of it. " _What's this about anyway?_ "

"Well, long story short, we found a way to shut down Extremis for good. We're going to alter the virus to neutralize the viral markers in others. But the virus, it's likely to mutate. It could turn the host into something else."

" _And you're thinking about making Blaine the host for this new virus_ ," Steve guessed. Tony tipped his head. " _It's up to Blaine, isn't it? I mean, shouldn't he be the one to make that call?_ "

"I don't exactly have time to discuss the finer points of this with him," Tony retorted with no real heat behind it. He knew this was unethical. He knew that Blaine should be completely informed before he went into this. This was more than the kid ever signed up for. Tony didn't know what would possibly happen to his son at the end of this. Best case scenario, he ended up with a stable version of Extremis and lived a normal life. Worst case, it mutated into something really bad and his son would end up living like one of those creatures in the sewer system, the Morlocks or something like that.

" _You should do_ _it_ ," Puck said, suddenly. Tony looked up to meet the teen's gaze. Though his eyes might have been from Steve's mom, the resolve behind them was all Peggy Carter. " _Blaine would want to do anything to help. You know it and I know it. He would want to help save the day. And he would take the risk. Besides, it doesn't matter what that virus does to him. He's still going to be Blaine at the end of the day._ "

Tony felt his lips twitch. "Yeah, you're right. He would want to do this. And he's still going to be him. Good call, kid. Nice to know you got some of your great grandmother and not just the Capsicle over here."

Steve rolled his eyes while Puck snickered. Bruce covered with a poorly time cough and then excused himself to retrieve something from the back of the lab. Steve's jaw clenched as muffled giggles emerged from the place they last saw Bruce.

" _Well, now that we've solved tha_ t," Steve sniffed, though they all saw the smile on his lips. " _I'm taking this one back to bed._ "

" _But I just left bed!_ " Puck whined.

" _Yeah, and now you're going back_."

" _Bed is lame!_ "

" _Yeah, so is being hospitalized for the second time in a month_ ," Steve shot back even as he wheeled the still protesting Puck out of the room. Their bickering eventually faded as they got on the elevator for the Infirmary.

Tony snorted. "Never a dull a moment, huh?"

" _No, and I don't think it will be much better once you give Blaine that shot._ "

"Let's just hope whatever alien changes those guys are supposed to have don't happen any time soon. I don't think anyone is prepared to deal with five super powered teenagers."

" _I'm barely able to deal with the super powered adults we already have_ ," Bruce grinned. The smile slowly faded as he looked at Tony. " _You ready to do this?_ "

"No," Tony replied honestly. "But for Blaine's sake, I will be."

With that said, the two men worked in silence on the virus that would ultimately shut down Extremis for good while also changing his son in a permanent way as well. Tony wasn't lying when he said that he worked better with Bruce. Sure, he probably could've come up with the formula on his own but it would've taken longer than he felt comfortable with. Blaine was literally on a countdown for his life. And thanks to Bruce's assistance, Tony completed an improved version of the virus that would completely neutralize any and all markers in the virus in anyone within a fifty mile radius initially. Gradually with time, that range would grow wider. Within a month, Extremis would just be a bad dream.

Tony pushed away from the lab table and knocked on the door where two guards were posted outside. He didn't need to say anything. He simply held up the syringe. They nodded and let him out, guiding him back through the maze like hallway to where his son and Clint were being held. Tony stopped suddenly as he looked at his little boy. His son. He was about to inject his son with a drug he never tested. He didn't know this was going to work.

"Dad?" Blaine asked, warily. He was sitting up now with Clint's head resting on his lap. Tony couldn't tell if the archer was awake or not before Blaine spoke but the blond head was now turned towards him. "Did you finish?"

"Yeah, I finished," Tony answered, stepping closer to his family. Clint sat up, looking beyond exhausted. He ran a hand through his hair.

"So that's it? We can leave now?"

"Not so fast, gentlemen," Killian's voice sounded. Tony grunted. "Now, Tony, not to say that I don't trust you but… I don't trust you. Inject your son."

Tony bit his cheek to hide the smirk he could feel growing. He knew that Killian would want Blaine to take the first injection. He made sure to meet Blaine's eyes even as Killian prepped the younger Stark for the shot. Blaine's brow furrowed briefly before he looked between the needle pressing into his skin and then his father. His lips ticked upwards and he nodded. Tony was never prouder of his kid than he was in that moment. Anyone who thought Iron Man was a hero clearly never met his son.

Tony pushed down on the injector before pulling his son into his arms. He leaned forward so that their foreheads were touching. He initially winced at the heat pouring off Blaine's skin but he stayed where he was. He waited as the new virus started to work against the Extremis already present in his system. Blaine let out a small whimper as the changes started to take effect. Tony pressed a kiss against his rapidly cooling forehead even as he continued to hold on tightly. Five minutes later, Tony could tell that the new virus was working already. Blaine was dramatically cooler.

"It's working," Tony whispered. Blaine gave a shaky nod before slumping against Tony's shoulder. The genius' hand immediately flew to his son's neck where he felt a steady pulse. He could feel Blaine's steady breaths against his chest. The new virus was stabilizing Blaine's condition and would soon work to neutralize Extremis period. It would also likely mutate within Blaine but Tony was going to pick his battles at the moment. He could worry about that once he got his son and Clint as far away from this craziness as possible.

"Excellent work, Mr. Stark," Killian's oily voice spoke, breaking the peaceful family moment. "I never doubted you for a moment. Now I'm going to need you to produce another series of injections. I'm afraid we've fallen a bit behind schedule."

"No," Tony snapped, whirling around to face the man. "The deal was that I would fix this and we go home. I fixed it. I left you the correct formula. You don't need me."

"You see, that's where you're wrong," Killian tutted, pulling a gun from his pocket. Tony tensed, shifting in front of his son. "You see, I'm not an idiot, Tony. I know that you did something to the formula. What you did, I'll never know. But it won't matter. Because I'm going to give you a very good reason to undo it."

"What…?" Tony barely had a moment to process what Killian was saying before the man changed his aim towards Clint and fired. The archer let out a quiet gasp even as he was flung backwards from the unexpected blast. Tony ran around to the other side of the gurney to find Clint sprawled inelegantly across the floor. Blue grey eyes were open wide even as the man's shaking, trembling hands tried to press ineffectively against the bleeding wound on his stomach. "Clint! No! No, no, no, no! You didn't have to do this!"

"I think, you'll find that I did. You see I'm not a stupid man, Mr. Stark. I know that you did something. But if you didn't and I was wrong, it should be no small matter to whip up another batch of Extremis and heal your friend. But if I was right, and I believe I am, you won't be able to. And the death of the young Hawkeye will be on your hands. But what's one more death to a man like you? How much blood is on your hands already, Tony?"

Tony tuned the words out as he focused on stabilizing Clint. He tore off the bottom of the sweater he was wearing and pressed it against the wound as tightly as he could. Clint moaned at the contact and Tony apologized even as he moved Clint to see the wound. On the bright side, there was an exit wound on the back. But that was the only positive here. Clint was bleeding too much and too fast, especially when he couldn't afford to lose any more blood than he already had. Tony pushed the blonde's sweat and blood soaked hair out of the way as those familiar eyes stared up at him.

"Hey," Clint murmured.

"Hey," Tony choked. "Clint, I…."

"I know," Clint cut him off. He raised the hand that Tony wasn't pressing against his wound and pointed to his ear. Tony's brow furrowed even as he tilted Clint's head to the side and looked at his ear. He felt his jaw drop as he pulled out a tiny ear piece. "I heard you and Bruce."

"How did they not know you had a communicator on?"

"They did…." Clint winced, riding out a wave of pain. "Told them it was… hearing aid."

"Smart thinking."

"Was the truth."

Tony paused. "You're deaf?" Clint gave a weak one armed shrug. "Unbelievable. Remind me to very angry with you when this all over."

"Sooner than you think," Clint joked weakly.

"That's not funny."

"Not trying. I heard… I know that…. none for me."

Tony shook his head. "I'm not going to let it end like this. I'll find a way. Besides, I'm pretty sure that Coulson and Fury will murder me on the spot if I let you die here. Not to mention what Natasha, Puck and Darcy might do. So see, I have to save you to save my own skin."

"So selfless," Clint laughed before coughing. Tony chose to ignore the blood staining his teeth. Because he was going to fix this… somehow. He was going to make another virus, one that would fix Clint and everything was going to be fine.

He didn't even notice that Killian was long gone along with the rest of his goons. Tony had only one goal in mind as he stumbled blindly towards the lab where he left all of his notes. He had to find a way to save Clint. It wasn't just because he was terrified to come home without him… but mostly because he didn't want to go back to the team without him. It still blew his mind that he was willingly part of a team, part of a family but the fact that he willingly allowed Clint and Bruce to be in his orbit always caught him off guard. He was attached to them. They were the brothers he always wished he had. And he would be dammed if he let one of them die. Not now. Not after they made it this far.

* * *

Blaine woke with a gasp and the sudden and complete feeling that everything was different. It didn't look different, but everything felt… different. It was an odd sort of feeling. He didn't feel bad. Just... different. But as he looked around, his surroundings weren't any different than his impromptu nap. He was still in the same dreary basement hideaway he had been for the past two days. The last thing he remembered was his father giving him what he could only assume was a modified version of Extremis and then nothing. A quick glance around the room showed that he was alone. No father, no Killian, no goons… nothing. What the hell?

"Hey…. You awake yet?"

Okay, so maybe he wasn't as alone as he thought. Blaine swung himself over the side of the gurney towards where he heard the voice from and felt his breath catch in his throat. Clint was slumped against the wall. His previously pale features were practically translucent. A pool of blood was collecting on the floor by his hip. Shaking fingers were pressed tightly against a sluggishly bleeding wound on his stomach. Blaine crashed to his knees beside the wounded archer.

"No, no, no, what do I do?"

"Nothing… you can do. It's okay."

"No!" Blaine protested, loudly. "This is not okay. The bleeding, gaping wound in your side is not okay, Clint. I don't know what they taught you in the circus but this is not okay."

"It's going to be fine," Clint tried again.

"No, it's not. There is an eighty percent chance that if you don't receive medical treatment in the next ten minutes, you will die. Although even with medical treatment, given your previous injuries, the complications you're likely to suffer will likely impair you from having a normal, functioning life."

Clint arched an eyebrow, staring back at him with pained eyes. "That is oddly specific," he murmured.

"Uh, yeah. It is. I think that the Extremis is still working."

"Yeah, it is."

"But wasn't Dad supposed to stabilize it? It shouldn't be working like this."

"Set up a new virus. Mutated, stabilized you and neutralizes everyone else."

"But that means…." Blaine trailed off because he didn't even want to think it. Clint gave him a sad smile. "No. Clint, no."

"None for me.'

Blaine shook his head. "No, I won't accept that. I'm not going to let you die here."

He didn't bother waiting for a response. He stood up and made his way to the makeshift lab Maya was working on prior to her untimely death. He forced himself not too look at her body which lay not too far from where he was standing. Instead, he focused on the computer in front of him. He turned it on frowning as the password prompt came up. He sighed, raking a hand through his hair and trying to think about what password the genius turned lackey to a psycho could've used when the computer unlocked itself.

"The hell?" he murmured to himself. He felt his jaw drop slightly as files began to open at random on the desktop. It wasn't until the file labeled  **Extremis Notes** opened that he even realized it was him. He was doing this. He was controlling the computer. And now that he had given it a thought, he realized that Maya's computer wasn't the only thing he could control. The steady humming noise he heard since he woke up seemed to be connected to computers. Maybe even all electronics. He was definitely going to toy around with that later…. After he saved Clint.

He studied the open document in front of him. He saw the formula that Maya was using and he could see how it was wrong. He somehow just knew the ways he could make it right. But if what Clint was saying was right, then any attempts to recreate the virus the way it should've been would fail because his father set Blaine up as a means to destroy it. So no, if he was going to save Clint (and he would), he was going to need to re-engineer the virus completely. He was going to have to create something totally new. He glanced over his shoulder. Clint gave him a weak thumbs up. Yeah, that would have to do for now.

Blaine would later be mind-blown by the way that information just made itself available to him. He was able to access information on any computer within the network system, including the notes that his father used to make the virus he gave to Blaine. Using that information and the information Maya had before she died, Blaine made short work of creating what he sincerely hoped was a new and improved version of Extremis that wouldn't be affected by whatever Tony did to him. Blaine held the syringe in his hands as he turned to the now too still Clint and hesitated. He knew what his father must have felt earlier standing in front of Blaine. It felt like he was playing god, almost. And not the fun kind of god, like Thor. Like the big one. They were interrupting the natural order of life. He looked down at the syringe in his shaking hand and the one that was in his pocket. The natural order of things. But… sometimes it was necessary to save the ones you loved. He kneeled in front of the archer.

"Clint?" no response. Blaine's eyes drifted down. Oh no, he wasn't breathing. Shakily, Blaine pressed his fingers against Clint's neck. It took more seconds that he would ever be comfortable with later, but he felt it. It was weak and thready but there. He was still alive but barely. That was enough to remove any and all hesitation from Blaine. The archer might hate him later but he would be there later to hate him. Besides, Blaine was pretty confident that Natasha and Puck would definitely be on the side of doing what it takes to bring Clint back. With them on his side, Clint didn't stand a chance.

So before he could talk himself out of it again, Blaine found a vein on Clint's damaged body and gently eased the needle in. With a quick exhalation, he pressed down on the syringe and prayed to every deity in the world that he wasn't too late. That he got it right. Because he couldn't afford to screw this one up. His dad would blame himself for losing Clint. He would lose himself in his work just like Howard before him. Blaine couldn't lose Tony like that. He wouldn't. But that meant that the stupid dramatic archer needed to wake the hell up and be okay because otherwise…

Clint lurched upright with a huge gasp of air that promptly turned into a coughing fit. Blaine eased him into a better sitting position before stepping back. He could see the Extremis glow flickering under Clint's skin. Blaine didn't know how long it was supposed to take to settle but he was willing to give the older man all the time in the world. Finally, after what seemed like hours but was actually barely fifteen minutes, Clint slumped against the wall, breathing heavily. Blaine watched as his breathing slowed to a normal pace and color started to spread through his complexion again. Still he hadn't said anything. Blaine took a chance and put a hand on Clint's arm and squeezed lightly. His skin was slightly warmer than usual but Blaine found that it was similar to his own temperature now. It was working.

"Clint?"

"Yeah, I'm here. Don't worry," Clint mumbled. He blinked a few times before squinting. "My ears hurt. And everything is like HD clear. Like super HD clear. But seriously…. My ears! Why is everything echoing?!"

"What's wrong with your ears?"

The archer winced at the sound of Blaine's voice. He reached into his ear and pulled out what looked like a tiny communicator from his left ear and then another from his right. And holy crap were those hearing aids?!

"You're deaf?!"

"Yeah," Clint replied. He paused. "Well, I was. But I can hear you just fine without these now. So I guess I'm not anymore?"

"Oh, wow. Dad is going to kill you for not telling him you were deaf all this time."

"Yeah, I know," Clint smirked. He blinked looking around the room. "Huh, so this is how Extremis works, huh?"

"Kinda. I just modified it a bit. It's not the exact original strand or even the one that dad modified me to fight against. It's a unique strand. It's to help repair significant tissue damage but not to do all the crazy extra stuff."

"Damn, and I really wanted to breathe fire and go boom," Clint grinned. He rose to his feet with all his usual grace. Blaine glanced over his body to see that most of the bruising and cuts were gone. If Blaine hadn't seen Clint with his own two eyes just three hours ago, he wouldn't know the man was knocking on death's door. He looked healthy… well except for all the blood coating his clothing and skin.

"Let's get out of here. You need a shower."

"Right, that's the priority right now," Clint laughed. "But you're right. Let's go find your father. He's probably worked himself into a panic thinking I'm dead and you're a mutating freak from hell." Clint stretched. "Also see if you can use that new computer brain of yours to find us a ride out of this place."

"Already done," Blaine smirked. "Aunt Natasha, Uncle Steve and Mom are already on their way. I sent them a signal with our location. Natasha just confirmed that she received the coordinates and that they're on their way."

"When you say Mom, you mean…."

"Pepper, who else? Like I really hope that Maya didn't kill my real mom but she did kind of sell me out to her. She definitely got my best friends poisoned. So she's kinda not my favorite person in the world right now."

"You'll figure it out, kid. But I do agree with the whole Pepper thing. She's been more of a mom to all of us than your mom."

"Word," Blaine agreed with a small grin. "Now, let's go find, dad. He's down on level two. Apparently Killian thinks we're both non issues because that's the only heavily guarded corridor."

"And you know this how?"

"I'm tapped into the security cameras."

Clint raised an eyebrow. "You figured that out really quick."

"I am a Stark."

"That you are, buddy. That you are."

* * *

Tony failed. That was the only way he could explain it. He saved his son and killed Clint in the process. He thought that he had outsmarted Killian but the man was one step ahead of him the whole time. If he wasn't an evil terrorist who just murdered a former colleague as well as his best friend, Tony might have appreciated the man's genius. But the fact remained that he did in fact just murder his best friend. So yeah, he wasn't really in an appreciative mood. He glanced around the room and winced. He did try when he got back in his lab to try and find a way to bring the Extremis virus back but all attempts failed. And he knew the longer it took, the less time Clint had. By his estimation, Clint was already gone. Stomach wounds were slow killers but they were almost always killers. So he trashed the lab in a fit of rage and slumped against the wall waiting for Killian to appear bragging about how he took out Hawkeye of the Avengers. Because he shot him. He shot him in the stomach and that was always a fatal shot this far away from non psychopaths and hospitals. Except apparently for now.

"All of this for me? I'm flattered."

Tony's eyes flew open at that sarcasm laced voice. That was impossible and yet. He blinked again and again only to find that the image hadn't changed. An all too smug looking blond archer flanked by an equally smug Blaine stood in the center of the room. Clint looked around the destruction with a raised eyebrow.

"I'd like to think that some of this was for me," Blaine chimed in.

"Dude, he knew you were alive. I was knocking on death's door like ten minutes ago. God, you Starks are so needy."

"I regret healing you."

"No you don't," Clint scoffed. He tilted his head and looked back to Tony. "Bro, you feel like getting up anytime soon? No offense but this has been the trip from Hell and I'm too ready to go home to my bed and my girl and a shower."

"Clint?!" Tony stood up, walking towards the younger man. "How is this possible? I saw you. Killian shot you. You shouldn't be alive, much less walking and talking and how?"

"Suffice to say that you and Bruce were right. The virus mutated in Blaine. He bonded with the virus and it upgraded his super brain. So he made a special for Clint batch of Extremis. Got to say, not to inflate your ego or anything, but your kid is pretty damn amazing."

Tony agreed with that statement whole-heartedly and he would tell Blaine that in just a minute. But in that moment, all he could say was, "you're okay. You're alive and okay." He pulled the archer into an embrace. It said a lot about everything that had experienced in the past few days that Clint didn't even fight him. He wound his arms around Tony's waist and relaxed into the hug. Tony held him for a moment longer before letting him go. "You're okay."

"Yeah," Clint mumbled, raking a hand through his dirty hair. "Yeah, I'm okay."

"And you," Tony said, turning to his son who was politely letting his father and favorite uncle have a moment. "You're freaking amazing, kid."

"Thanks, Dad," Blaine choked out before being yanked into a hug as well. He squeezed his kid tightly. "We're okay now, Dad."

"Yeah, I know. It's just that you two… you're bad for my heart."

"Well, it's a good thing we can take care of ourselves now, huh?" Clint chimed in.

"Yeah, I guess so," Tony agreed, still not letting go of Blaine. The reality that he came dangerously close to losing his son was just starting to settle in. It was too close. He almost lost him. His youngest. His baby.

"Dad?"

"Yeah, sweetheart?"

"Can we go home now?"

"Hell yes!" Tony laughed, pulling away with a smile. "Let's get the hell out of here. I assume one of you called for a ride."

"Yeah, in a matter of speaking," Clint grinned. He slung an arm around Blaine's shoulders. "You're going to be insufferable aren't you?"

"Yes," Blaine answered with complete sincerity.

"Well, well what do we have here?"

Tony cursed at the sound of Killian's voice. God, he seriously hated that man. But while he was loathe to even see the man again after all the havoc he caused, Tony couldn't deny that the look of confusion on his face at the moment was priceless. Clint smirked. And it was in that moment that Tony remembered that underneath the goofy, carefree exterior Clint projected, the man was actually one of SHIELD's finest. He was a spy, an assassin and a damned good one. He was dangerous before Blaine injected him with the modified Extremis virus. Tony grinned. This almost made everything they just went through worth it.

"I shot you!" Killian continued, not knowing how to read the room. "You should be dead by now. I shot you!"

"You know if I had a dollar for everyone's that ever said that to me, I'd be richer than Tony," Clint shrugged. "And yeah, you shot me. It hurt. I didn't like it. I told you there was no way that you were going to walk away a winner. And I meant that. Payback time, bitch."

Killian was grossly unprepared for how quickly Clint moved. Tony found himself cataloging the changes in his friend. Definite increase in reaction time and agility. Clint was a force to be reckoned with before but now? Killian could barely keep up. Although that might have had less to do with Clint's newfound prowess and more to do with his grinning kid. Killian paused long enough in the onslaught that was Clint to notice.

"What did you do?!"

Tony looped an arm around Blaine, pulling him against his side securely. "What I meant to do all along. Stop you. Blaine is a walking, talking cure for Extremis."

"But then how…"

"Clint has his own version of the virus. The Blaine special," Blaine retorted. Clint glanced over his shoulder and shook his head. "Dude, give me a break. I literally just made the thing. I'll think of a better name for it later!"

"I'm just saying… it lacks pizazz."

"Why do you even know that word?" Tony mumbled. Clint rolled his eyes.

"Suffice to say that Clint now has a hybrid version of Dr. Hansen's original work but better. So better than yours and not neutralized by mind. He's his own kind of person now."

Clint smirked, kneeling down in front of Killian. Though he was facing away from them, Tony could still see the slight glow of Clint's eyes. Judging from the way that Killian looked like he was about five seconds away from destroying his stupid Armani suit, Tony had a feeling it was every bit as frightening as Clint intended it to be.

"Hey? Do you think we could stop at Burger King on the way home? I'm freaking starving?" Clint asked, glancing over his shoulder again. The glow was fading away in his eyes leaving behind wide, slightly worried blue gray eyes. Tony found himself smiling slightly.

"We can stop anywhere you want."

"Why does he get anything he wants?" Blaine protested. "I'm the one that did the hard work. If it wasn't for me, he would totally be dead."

"Blaine, you love Burger King."

"Yeah, but I just feel like it would've been nice to be considered."

Clint rolled his eyes. "Where do you want to stop?"

"Burger King."

Tony shook his head and ignored the bickering children as he looked for something in the midst of the wreckage that would help him to tie up Killian. The man was practically petrified in his spot. Losing really didn't seem to settle with him. Still, he wanted him tied up before he started getting bullet happy again. Though he had a feeling that they would heal.

"Wait, what are we going to do with the Extremis stuff? I mean I know I work for SHIELD and they would want a chance to study it but… I just think that…"

"He's right," Blaine added. "No one should have this kind of information. Extremis, even the Blaine special could be really dangerous in the hands of the wrong people."

Tony sighed. The scientist in him wanted to disagree. Wanted to argue about all the lives that could be changed with that kind of information. But Killian was living proof that they were right. The fact that Happy was in the hospital was just further explanation.

"Wipe it."

Blaine nodded. He walked over to the overturned computer station and put a hand on it. It sparked to life and Tony watched as information passed over the screen at a dizzying rate. Blaine's eyes were blank as he went through the systems wiping all evidence and information regarding the Extremis virus. Tony was going to have a parental panic moment about that later. For now, he settled for being impressed as all hell.

"That's it," Blaine shrugged. "All proof of the virus is gone." He absently patted his the pocket on his jeans before looking at Tony with a defiant look on his face. Tony arched an eyebrow and shrugged. He had no idea why Blaine was holding on to a sample of the virus but his kid proved he was more than capable of making good decisions. He would let him have this one. He trusted that the kid had a good reason.

"Alright, boys, let's go home!"

* * *

Pepper held onto Blaine the entire ride back to the Tower. She kept him tucked under her chin as the emotional and physical exhaustion finally caught up to him. Tony was holding onto both of them. His head was heavy against hers as he finally felt safe enough to sleep. Steve was up front flying the plane with careful supervision from Natasha. The only reason she was letting him have a chance at all was because she had her arms full of a sleeping archer. She looked like she was tempted to fly anyway until Tony let her know just how close they came to losing Clint for good. Suddenly she didn't seem to want to let go either.

The plane touched down three hours later. Thankfully, no one had to wake them as the landing woke all three men. Tony yawned, stretched and immediately sought out Blaine and then Clint. Once he was satisfied that they were both still here and still alive, he let out a quiet sigh of relief. Pepper pressed a kiss against his cheek. She knew this wasn't going to be easy for him. But she was going to be by his side every single day.

" _Welcome home Masters Stark and Agent Barton._ "

"JARVIS!" Tony smiled at the sound of the AI's voice, seemingly settling a little more. Pepper smiled. "Missed you, buddy."

" _I missed you as well, sir_."

"J, how is…."

" _I'm pleased to report that Mr. Hogan has woken up and appears to be on the mend_ ," JARVIS reported.

Pepper let out a quiet sigh. She hasn't even thought about Happy since Tony and Clint went off the radar. But she was glad to know that their friend would be okay. She was taking both Tony and Blaine to see him in the morning. The only reason she wasn't taking them now because they both looked like they were seconds away from falling asleep on their feet. Although she noticed them both perking up as the elevator doors opened to reveal the rest of the anxious and worried team.

"What? No balloons?" Blaine grinned. Puck, Santana, Donnie and Brittany rolled their eyes but still couldn't keep the smiles off their faces. Sam bit his lip before pulling Blaine out of the elevator and looking him over for hidden injuries or life-threatening wounds. He cupped Blaine's face gently between his hands as his eyes roamed over Blaine's body. Pepper recognized the look of anxiety on Sam's face. She was wearing that same expression just a few hours ago. She totally sympathized.

Clint and Natasha disappeared shortly after exiting the elevator. Not before Puck and Clint exchanged adorable and awkward hugs. She would worry about the young assassin but she knew that Natasha had him well in hand. Not to mention, she knew that Natasha was most likely taking him to see Ward. The agent insisted on staying at the Tower until Clint came back. He spun it as wanting a SHIELD presence there until Clint returned but Pepper knew it was because he was worried about Clint. The two men had an interesting relationship that was definitely going to pick apart with Natasha during their next brunch but for now, the only relationship she could focus on was the one hopefully happening in front of her.

"I'm fine, Sammy," Blaine assured him, squeezing the hands still holding his face gently. "I'm actually more than fine but that's a story for when I'm less exhausted and why are you still looking at me like that?"

Sam opened his mouth to say something but changed his mind. He closed his mouth so quickly, Pepper could hear his teeth click. She saw the internal struggle flash across his faces before he muttered something along the lines of 'screw it' and crashed his lips against Blaine's. If Blaine was at all surprised, he sure didn't show it. His hands immediately rose to bury themselves in Sam's hair, deepening the kiss into something not at all appropriate for right in front of his parents. But hey, Blaine was kidnapped and Sam almost died only two days ago. Pepper was going to let them have this one.

"Pay up, assholes!" Santana crowed, clapping her hands together in obvious joy. Puck arched an eyebrow.

"How the hell did you win?"

"Bruce and I both picked immediately following the next big crisis," Santana reported, flinging her arm towards the very oblivious couple.

"That already happened. You know when Donnie almost died. When I actually died."

"That was a SHIELD crisis. This was a family crisis. Yours didn't count. This did. So everyone needs to pony up!"

Pepper couldn't help but giggle as several eyes turned to her to act as judge. She shrugged. "Santana does raise a point. Not that your death wasn't important, Noah."

"This family sucks," Puck muttered, fishing around in his jeans for whatever money they agreed to put up for this.

"This family is awesome," Santana corrected, already counting her winnings. "Now shut up and let I'll let you borrow half to take Rachel out somewhere fancy."

"Yeah, this family is pretty awesome."

Pepper grinned letting the bickering fade to the back of her mind as she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist. She turned to meet Tony's gaze. "Hi, stranger."

"Hey, yourself," he whispered, kissing her briefly. "So my son is making out with his best friend. Should I be alarmed?"

"Nah," Pepper snickered. "I'd be more alarmed if they weren't making out. Like how much more was it going to take?"

"Am I seriously the only person who didn't see that one coming?"

"No, because you saw it coming," Pepper said, raising an eyebrow. Tony grinned. "You like Sam. You know he's good for him."

"At this point, anything is a step up over Kurt. But you're right. I do like Sam and I do know he'll be good for him. And I'm actually happy that they're finally together."

Pepper wrapped her arms around his neck. "Just when I think I can't fall in love with your more, you go and say something really adorable."

"Keeping you on your toes," Tony grinned, leaning forward. Pepper smiled against his lips and closed her eyes.

"Ew!" Blaine's voice cut through their moment. "Gross. Get a room, you guys."

"Seriously, kid? Weren't you just making out with the Blonde Wonder over there?"

"That's different."

"How, you little hypocrite?"

"You guys are my parents! No one wants to see their parents making out. That's just wrong."

"Facts," Brittany nodded.

"Why do I put up with any of you again?" Tony asked with a fond smile.

"Because you love us," Sam, Santana, Blaine, Brittany and Puck replied in unison. All that time in glee club really paid off after all.

"That was a rhetorical question, you little nightmares." He rolled his eyes. "You know what we need?"

"Like three days of sleep?" Bruce suggested in a tone that implied he would be making sure that Tony got that sleep whether he wanted to or not. Pepper has mentioned how grateful she is that Bruce came into their lives, right? Because she totally was.

"No, we need Disney. Where did you guys leave off?"

"Uh, I think we were up to  _Aladdin_."

"J, cue up  _Aladdin_. And order about a dozen pies from Ray's. Oh, and donuts. Donuts help everything."

"As you wish, sir."

Pepper wanted to protest. Tony, Blaine and Clint really needed to get some rest. Puck and Sam definitely needed to be back in bed. But she could tell that none of them were going to be sleeping easily anytime soon. Not to mention, it was unlikely that they were going to want to be away from the others for too long. Even now, she saw Clint and Natasha slinking back in the room. So Pepper bit down on the protests and followed her family into the common room that was soon transformed into a makeshift lounge.

The kids were tangled together in a massive cuddle pile on the pillow and blanket covered floor. Natasha and Darcy were snuggling Clint between them. Steve was sitting to the right of the kids with his back resting against the sofa where Bruce and Thor had set up camp. Somehow Steve had managed to find Puck's head through the pile of limbs and was running his fingers through Puck's hair absently. Tony and Pepper settled on the loveseat across from them. Cooper plopped down on the floor next to them. His head was tilted back and Tony occasionally reached down to place a hand on his shoulder or his head relaxing them both. Pepper rested her head on Tony's shoulder as the movie started.

There would be a lot of questions later. They would need to explore the full extent of Clint and Blaine's enhancements. They would all need to give statements about Killian and the phony Mandarin. But for right now, they were all together for the first time in what felt like forever. And Pepper was going to take that as a victory and worry about everything else later. She snuggled deeper into Tony's embrace. He kissed her forehead gently before resting his head against hers.

Yeah, it was perfect.


	15. Long Road to Lima

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony decides that normal means going back to the place they all hate but he forgets that the kids are actually allergic to normal.

Blaine tried not to flinch, grimace or otherwise react as the car pulled to a stop in front of the one place he was certain none of them ever wanted to see again: William McKinley High School. As a matter of fact, he was pretty damn sure none of them even wanted to be back in Lima, much less at the school. But according to his genius asshole of a father, they all needed to do something normal in the aftermath of Extremis and finding out the others were alien hybrids. They needed to just be normal teenagers for a bit. And apparently, again, according to his genius father, normal teenagers did stuff they hated all the time. Things they hate such as going back to the high school they had to claw their way out and seeing the people they barely spoke to after said clawing their way out.

The only bright spot in all of this was that they did get to see some of the people they did talk to on a regular basis. Artie and Tina were still there. And rumor had it that Mike and Rachel were also flying in. So Blaine at least had something to look forward to. He rolled his eyes as Sam moved his hand away from where it was absently rubbing his pocket. It was a bad habit he had started ever since they escaped from Killian's facility earlier that month. It was the only remaining strain of the Extremis virus he made for Clint. The formula only existed in his head and he was definitely not sharing that with anyone. He had saved one syringe with the intent to deliver it to one person in particular. And after nearly a month of observations and testing on Clint, Blaine knew it was safe. So okay, there were two bright spots in this whole forced vacation from hell.

The five former students and their collective plus one, Donnie, moved through the crowded hallway with the grace taught to them by Natasha and Clint. They didn't stop walking to acknowledge anyone or anything until they finally reached the choir room. Sam knocked on the door, waiting for someone inside to acknowledge them. And then the door opened and Blaine felt the already tenuous mood plummet. Because yes, they were going to get to see Artie, Mike and Rachel but that also meant dealing with some of the more hateful members like Finn Hudson who was standing in the open doorway gaping at the six teens before him.

"Are you just going to stand there or let them in?" Artie's voice called over Finn's shoulder, thankfully ending the awkward staring contest. Finn stepped to the side and let them enter the room at last.

Blaine scanned the room and found that besides the few new kids scattered around the room, there were also a few more alumni that made the trip to the school early as well. Mike, Mercedes, Quinn and Kurt were already there. Before Blaine could wonder where Rachel was, his attention was caught on the fact that Mercedes and Mike were sitting really close to one another while Tina was clear on the other side of the room with an ugly expression clouding her features. That was odd. And then he didn't care about any of that as the six teens were swept into a wave of introductions and reunions.

The new kids seemed pleasant enough if not embarrassingly familiar. The blonde cheerleader was clearly the closest Will could get to having Santana and Quinn back. Marely couldn't be more like Rachel if she tried. Ryder and Finn were cut from the same cloth. Oh, and judging by the way Marley and Ryder were sitting, they were together as well. Guess there was no new Puck in this scenario. Unique, he knew from the previous school year was the lovechild between Kurt and Mercedes in terms of style and talent. Really? Will couldn't look outside his old students and find any student in that school that didn't strongly resemble the alumni? Also why were the new kids staring at Puck? They kept squinting in his direction and turning odd looks in the direction Will and Finn were standing in. Blaine clenched his jaw. If he found out that either man said anything Puck other than that he was a student…

"So the prodigal students return!" Artie cheered with mock offense in his tone. Blaine grinned raising his fist to meet Artie's. "Welcome back the land of the hopeless."

"You act like we're the only ones who are going to make it out of this town. On that note good luck on your film school interview next week," Santana retorted.

Artie narrowed his eyes. "How did you know about that?"

Santana smirked distractedly. "Oh, just because I'm gone doesn't mean I don't have ways of following up on my boy." Artie looked both flattered and disturbed. As well he should. It was Santana. Living with her didn't mean Blaine was any less terrified of how that woman's brain worked. It just meant he knew he was grateful that she was on his side. Unlike the new kids.

Blaine noticed that though she was still talking with Artie, teasing him with a smirk on her lips, she was also eyeing the new kids and their odd interest in Puck. He hoped they got over their shit sooner than later because Santana did not tolerate threats to Puck very well these days. It seemed the third time was the charm for her in regards to the weird death omen connection they shared. She was protective to an almost insane degree and if it wasn't for the fact that they were all highly amused by her antics, they might have been concerned. But it was a good source of amusement and so no one intervened… yet.

"So how is life in New York treating you all?" Will asked, crossing over to where they were now sitting down and inadvertently saving the lives of his students. "Kurt was saying that he barely sees any of you."

"Well, we did break up under fairly horrible circumstances," Blaine pointed out. "So I really didn't have any reason or desire to see him even the few times I've had to since moving to New York."

"And we never really liked him to begin with so we definitely didn't have a reason," Sam chimed in, scooting his chair closer to Blaine. He shook his head at his boyfriend's subtle possessive behavior before focusing on Will who was now moving past that awkward moment onto Puck. Kurt looked torn between fuming and staring curiously between Blaine and Sam. Blaine smiled to himself.

"So, Santana, Puck, how's training going?" Will asked, desperately trying to defuse the tension slowly building in the room.

"Done," Puck answered. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his badge. Donnie and Santana also held out their own identifying them as agents of SHIELD. It didn't show that they were level six and therefore had access to more information than almost everyone in that room. Blaine was careful to say almost because thanks to Extremis, he could crack even a Level 10 encrypted file in the blink of an eye. Skye was so not a fan of his anymore.

"Didn't you just start training in August? It's barely March and you're done already?" Tina asked, leaning closer to see their badges. "What did you guys sleep with the director or something?"

"One, you're gross," Puck shuddered. "He's like our granduncle or something."

"Two, you're a bitch," Santana finished, flipping her the finger in the process. Tina glared. Santana grinned wider earning a warning poke in the ribs from Sam. She elbowed him in the ribs prompting both Donnie and Puck to hide laughs behind their hands.

"Aren't you so glad to be home?" Artie murmured in Blaine's ear, eliciting a surprised chuckle. "Seriously, it's damn good to see you guys."

"You were going to see us in a few months. There's no way that we were going to miss your graduation. We still won't," Blaine answered with a smile. His hand was tapping away on his pocket again and the precious cargo he held inside it. The original plan was to give it to Artie as a graduation present. But now they were here months ahead of schedule and it was burning a hole in his pocket. Not a literal hole because he totally fixed that burning problem but a figurative one… and dammit. "Hey, Artie? You think we could talk? Like in private?"

A worried look passed over the other teen's face but he nodded. Blaine took a deep breath, rising from his seat and following his friend out of the choir room. They both ignored the curious stares from the other members of New Directions (past and present) until they were standing down the hall.

"So what's up?"

Blaine fidgeted slightly. Now that he was faced with the prospect of actually telling Artie about Extremis, he found that words were failing him. What if Artie didn't appreciate the offer? What if it made him angry? What if this was the stupidest idea in the history of stupid ideas? He was suddenly regretting even opening his mouth to ask Artie to leave with him.

"Blaine, is everything okay?"

"Uh, the thing is… Artie. I… you know how my dad is Tony… and there are people in the world that do bad things… the thing is that there is virus thing that can…. Oh god, this is so not going how I thought it was going to go."

"Sounds like," Artie grinned. "This virus thing, is it the same virus thing that Puck and Sam got hit with two weeks ago?"

"How'd you know about that?"

"Britt told me that Sam and Puck were throwing up parts of their lungs. It begged further discussion," Artie laughed. "So what about this virus thing? Puck and Sam look like they recovered pretty well."

"Yeah, they did. They weren't the only ones that were infected. I got infected too."

"Oh, Britt left that part out."

"Kinda thought she would," Blaine snorted. "Yeah, I got sick. And my dad and Bruce came up with a variation of the virus that effectively disabled the previous variations, including the one that infected me, Sam and Puck initially."

"That's good."

"And then the bad guy shot Clint and we needed another dose of the virus to save his life. So I kind of made one. And it did save his life. And so far there have been no long lasting side effects. I mean its Clint so who really knows but anyway. I destroyed the virus. I just felt like if it fell into the wrong hands it would be bad. And let's face it, it would fall into the wrong hands. So I destroyed all but one dose."

"Why did you save one dose?"

"Because while I feel like it's playing god, I get what the original point of the virus was. Dr. Hansen wanted to help people. Soldiers that lost limbs fighting wars. People who lost their hearing or went blind. Or a friend crippled in a childhood accident that deserves a chance to walk at his high school graduation and to dance at his prom."

Artie's breath caught in his throat. "Me?" he choked out. "You saved the dose for me."

Blaine pulled the capped syringe slightly out of his pocket. "It's your choice. You can say no. I mean I haven't observed anything horrible with Clint. He's not breathing fire or anything, much to his disappointment. But his eyesight, which was already off the charts, has improved dramatically. He's also a lot more flexible apparently. I'm going to file that under information I never wanted to know when it comes to him and Natasha." Artie gave a watery laugh. "I don't expect you to make the decision today, bro. I just wanted… I wanted to let you know that there was a way."

"How much would it cost?"

"Just your friendship and a promise of invites to every single one of your future film premieres. Especially the ones with really hot actors."

"You're not going to charge me?"

"Originally it was going to be your graduation gift but apparently we pissed off all the Avengers and they dumped us on a plane to Lima. So I'm giving this you a littler earlier than planned. But it's yours, Artie. No strings attached. No hidden clauses. I just couldn't destroy the virus in good faith without giving you an opportunity to decide whether you wanted it or not."

Artie nodded slowly. "Can I get a few days to think about it?"

"Of course. Take all the time you need."

* * *

"So what do you think they're talking about?" Tina asked once the door closed behind Blaine and Artie. Puck rolled his eyes. He was never a huge fan of the former Goth to begin with but she seemed to have a permanent bug up her ass lately. And that bug seemed to make her lash out. Part of him knew she was hurting about something. But the other part of him that knew about real suffering really didn't care that much.

"I know what it is. It's a good thing, promise," Brittany smiled softly. It was the smile she wore when she knew something that none of them knew. And given that it was Brittany, she was almost always wearing that smile. He hated how much he loved that girl.

"I have mentioned how much I hate that she knows everything and we know nothing, right?" Santana commented idly. Her attention still flickering between their friends and the new kids that were still staring at him. It was getting to be a bit annoying now. But he couldn't let that show. He knew if he let even a hint of discomfort show, Santana would pounce.

"We're like Jon Snow," Puck announced with a bright grin. "Well even hotter but with less awesome hair versions of Jon Snow."

"Speak for yourself, bitch. My hair is fabulous," Santana shot back with the beginnings of a smile. Her attention pulling more towards them than the still not stealthily staring new kids.

"You guys got Puck to sit still long enough to watch an episode of  _Game of Thrones_?!" Mike asked incredulously. Puck narrowed his eyes playfully. "Dude, I tried to get you to watch  _Lord of the Rings_  and you didn't make it past the first twenty minutes before you fell asleep."

"In my defense, the first movie was boring for the first like hour and a half," Puck grinned. "But in your face, Ninja Star. I finished all three  _Lord of the Rings_  movie. The Extended Editions at that. And I'm all caught up on  _Game of Thrones_. I had a lot of free time on my hands after the heart attack and the literal virus from hell that tried to murder me, Sammy and Blaine."

"The what?!"

Puck froze. He didn't need to look to know that Brittany and Santana were slowly inching away from the scene, dragging a confused Donnie with them. Sam stayed at his side but he knew the blonde's face would reflect just how much he wanted to flee as well. He was a good friend. And Puck was an idiot. He was a huge, unadulterated idiot. Because of course if Kurt was here and Finn was here, it should've stood to reason that she wouldn't too far behind.

"Hey, Rachel," Puck greeted with what he hoped was a genuine smile. Rachel's eyes narrowed. Yeah, that so didn't work.

"A heart attack?! Noah, you promised me that you were going to be careful. That doesn't sound like being careful to me. That sounds like taking chances with your life. You know the thing you said you wouldn't do?!"

"In my defense, all I was trying to do was give my poor frozen roommate some soup. Then I got hit with a weapon of mass destruction shaped like a Taser. And I know Tasers. Darcy's been using one since she got boobs. That thing was not cool."

"Soup?" Rachel arched an eyebrow.

"Yeah, soup."

"And the 'literal virus from hell'?"

"That would be because Blaine's mom poisoned us. Again, not my fault."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "No, it's just proving that you need an actual keeper. Apparently you can't do normal human tasks without endangering your life. Seriously, who almost dies bringing someone soup or eating lunch? You! That's who!"

Sam slapped a hand over his mouth in an effort to hide his poorly muffled snorts. He failed. Puck took it back. Sam was a horrible friend. Puck pouted. Rachel rolled her eyes again but he could see the smile forming on her lips. He stuck his bottom lip out a bit further until she finally relented. She wrapped her arms around him and he felt his own circling around her waist.

"I missed you."

"I saw you like last week," Puck chided, pulling away from her reluctantly.

"Noah, I most certainly did not see you a week ago. The last time I saw you was a month and a half ago. And apparently in that time you managed to almost die twice."

"Technically he did die once," Santana corrected. Rachel narrowed her eyes before whirling around to face Santana. His partner gulped dramatically.

"Santana Lopez, I believe that you claimed responsibility for making sure he stayed alive. Weren't you the one that said you were going to 'make sure the idiot didn't get himself killed'? So what happened?"

Santana blinked throwing a helpless look at Puck. He smirked at her. She glared before opening her mouth to say make some sort of excuse. But before she did common sense kicked in and she was spinning on her heels and all but bolting out the door. Rachel was hard on her tail. Brittany giggled and followed the two girls out into the hallway with a confused yet bemused Donnie in tow.

"You know, it is kind of good to be home," Sam mused. Puck laughed in response flopping back down in his seat. He smiled in relief as Tina finally moved away to harass Kurt and Quinn leaving him alone with Sam, Mike and Mercedes.

He took a moment to observe the pair. Mike had barely acknowledged Tina when she was sitting with them. Instead, he was more focused on Mercedes. Come to think of it, Tina was giving more than a few dirty looks to Mercedes. He narrowed his eyes looking between the pair. Now that he was looking at the situation with new eyes, it made a lot more sense. According to the gossip (aka whenever they found time to check emails and social media), Mike had dropped out of college and was instead living in Los Angeles, where Mercedes was working on trying to find a record label. Puck had to admit that he never saw those two hooking up but it actually wasn't that surprising. It was actually kind of cute.

"So Puck, congratulations on finishing training," Mercedes said, dragging him from his thoughts. He met her gaze and was surprised by the sheepish smile on her face. "I know that I didn't come across supportive… or even nice, when you talked about it before graduation. But I'm glad to see you're doing well."

"Thanks, Mercedes," he replied, smiling a little himself. Truthfully, he wasn't bothered by Mercedes' comments to him before they graduated. They didn't exactly have the best history together, so he didn't expect much more from her. "So how's the label hunting going?"

"Good. I think I might have a possible lead."

"Might?" Mike scoffed. "Cedes, you have more than a great chance at two different labels. Columbia is really interested in you. And Sony keeps calling. Pretty sure Matt is about to scream if the phone rings one more time."

"Wait, Rutherford?"

"Yeah, you remember him," Mike teased. "He's living with us out in LA. He wanted to come this week but he couldn't get off from work and school. He said he'll definitely try and make it to graduation. So you better be back for that too. He's been bitching about wanting to see you for months."

Puck couldn't help the wide grin on his face. He hadn't seen Matt in ages. Specifically since the other boy moved to Seattle with his family after their sophomore year. The loss hit him hard as really Matt and Mike were his two strongest supports in that school after the mess that was Babygate. Though he did meet Sam that year, so it wasn't a total loss. Speaking of Sam…

"Stop with that face," he chided. "You know you're much more than just my best friend. You're like my annoyingly blonde little brother."

"Damn right," Sam muttered with a twist of his lips. "After all, we do share DNA."

"Uh, you share DNA?" Mike asked, hesitantly.

Puck shrugged. "Yeah, it's classified."

"Oh, you dork. You've been waiting to say that!" Sam crowed. Puck rolled his eyes, neither confirming nor denying but he knew Sam was well aware of the truth. Stupid best friend. He rolled his eyes again before looking over the amused Mike and Mercedes.

"So how long have you two been a thing?" Puck drawled, taking extreme pleasure from their blushes and stammered answers.

"Uh, we, um…. How did you know?"

"One, you're sitting really close to each other. Two, Mike hasn't taken his eyes off you for more than a minute since we got here. Three, your hand keeps flexing like you want to hold his hand but you keep stopping. Four, Tina hasn't stopped mean grilling you two since we got here. And finally, five, you both smell like the body wash Mike has been using since we were fourteen." Mike looked completely amazed while Mercedes was torn between impressed and slightly embarrassed. Puck grinned.

"We actually got together a few months ago," Mike admitted, giving Mercedes a look that showed just how in love his friend was. Puck didn't know how or why those two found each other but he couldn't deny that it was adorable.

"I'm happy for you both," Puck said. "You both deserve to be happy and it's really obvious that you're making each other happy. Besides it's a major improvement over your last exes."

"I was her last ex," Sam grunted.

"Oh, I meant Shane. You know I barely remember you guys got back together. Probably because your epic love for….." Puck trailed off as Sam slammed a hand over his mouth. He laughed before licking his best friend's palm, enjoying Sam's squeals of disgust. "You know people are going to figure it out sooner or later."

"Not everyone in this room is a trained investigator," Sam grumbled. "And it's not like we're hiding. We're just not… broadcasting it to the world."

"Oh, we know you're not hiding. I'm sixty percent sure that's why Tony was so quick to bounce our asses out of the Tower," Puck teased. Sam poked him in the ribs earning a brief grunt of pain that morphed into a snicker.

"Yeah, that and the epic prank war you and San managed to rope Clint, Thor, Skye and Donnie into that spread to the whole Tower and parts of SHIELD!"

"There was that," Puck snickered. It was then that he noticed that the staring was growing even more intense. They weren't even trying to disguise it anymore. He glanced between the new kids who were now looking at again to Finn and Will.

"Okay, what the hell is going on? Why do you guys keep looking at me like that?!"

Marley, Unique and Ryder all flushed and looked down at their shoes. The blonde cheerleader that was basically Santana and Quinn's evil lovechild met his gaze steadily. She scoffed at the others as well as Finn and Will who were suddenly very involved in looking over the song list for future performances. Cowards. Kitty rolled her eyes dramatically.

"You reminded us of someone," she finally answered. "There was this kid that auditioned for the glee club but ended up running away from home a month into the school year. Everyone is staring like a bunch of psycho freaks because you look a lot like an older, whiter version of him."

Puck's brow furrowed. "There was a kid that looked like me? What was his name?"

"That's not really important right now, is it, Puck?" Will asked, trying to plaster a smile on his face. A heavy feeling of dread settled in his stomach. He had a feeling that if he kept this up he was going to discover something he really didn't want to know. But at the same time, not asking didn't make it not real. It just meant he kept being ignorant of it. And ignorance always comes back to bite you in the ass.

"Hey, Kitten," he addressed the only one brave enough to talk back. She met his gaze unflinchingly. He liked this one. "What was his name?"

"Jake… Puckerman," she answered, quietly. "He was here for the first month of school. And then one day, he just disappeared. There was an investigation but nothing ever turned up. Or rather they never told us anything."

"Jake Puckerman," Puck whispered. He looked at Sam, who was similarly confused.

"You don't have a brother."

"I don't."

"But Puckerman isn't exactly the most common surname, especially in this town."

"It is not."

"So…." Sam trailed off, looking worriedly between Puck and Will, who was trying his best to disappear into the background. "What are your thoughts on this, Mr. Schue?"

Will sighed. "When I met him, I had an idea. But when he auditioned for New Directions, he never gave a last name. I had to look him up. I wanted to call you but you were in training and I didn't know how to get in contact with any of you. So I just kept it quiet thinking you guys would be back one day and I could break it to you then. Only Jake disappeared."

"He's my brother?"

"It would appear so," Will said, sympathy in his voice. "He's the son of your father. He's fifteen." Puck felt his breath catch and he was glad that he was sitting down. Because seriously?! He had a brother. "Puck?"

"No, I'm, I just… I can't be here," he mumbled.

He clumsily rose to his feet, ignoring Sam's protests behind him, intent on just making it to the door. He had to get out of here. He had to get away. Get away from all the eyes that were watching him. He blindly wandered until he was sitting on the same bleachers where Rachel broke up with him. He snorted. Figures. His mind was reeling. Thoughts flittering in and out before he could even really register them. The kid could just have the same last name and apparently look like a darker version of him for no reason. Or….

"He could just be my little brother."

With a deep sigh, he tried to process his feelings on this latest bombshell. He had a little brother. His bastard of a father actually had another child between him and Sarah. And given how utterly irresponsible and self-absorbed his father was then, Puck could only imagine that this kid saw even less of their father than him. So there was another Puckerman in the world. Steve had another great grandson. He paused, a shiver running down his spine. Steve had another great grandchild in the world and that kid just went missing. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed his aunt's number with shaky fingers.

Though Elizabeth Lewis was frequently exasperated by her younger brother's antics, she was pretty much the only one in their family that reliably knew anything about the man. Aaron Puckerman was an enigma, one that Puck never had the energy or desire to figure out. Short of trying to figure out how a lazy lout like his father could ever be descended from Steve Rogers or Peggy Carter, Puck really hadn't put much thought into his father in months. But now he had questions and aside from the man himself, there was only one person in this world would have his answers.

" _Noah_!" Elizabeth's cheery voice answered the phone. He found himself smiling somewhat in response. "T _o what do I owe the honor?_ "

"Hey, Aunt Liz. I, uh, I'm back in Lima."

" _Oh, no. Baby, what happened?_ "

"No, no, it's just for a break. Apparently having us all home in the Tower broke the Avengers. They put us on a jet and dropped us off here. Our teacher is getting married, so Tony figured we should attend."

Elizabeth laughed. " _Sounds about right. Hell, you and Darcy alone used to drive me crazy. I can't imagine you two and those other friends of yours. So how is good old Lima, anyway? The school still kicking without you?_ "

"I know," he blurted out. "I know about Jake." He heard his aunt sigh softly. "So it's true? Dad had another kid?"

_"Yeah, sweetie. He had another kid. Jacob Elijah Puckerman. He'll turn sixteen in a few weeks actually. He's your baby brother."_

"And he's missing?"

_"Disappeared in the beginning of October."_

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

_"And how was I supposed to do that? 'Oh, hey, Noah. You know how you just found out that Captain America is your great grandfather and now your cousins are finally playing nice and you're already so confused about your family? Well guess what, you have a little brother who is now missing! Hurray!' Should I have done something like that?" Liz asked slyly._

"A little less sarcastic, but I get your point. That was probably not going to go over well. Especially back in October." He fidgeted somewhat on the bench. "Did you ever meet him?"

_"Yeah, I did."_

"What's he like?"

_"A lot like you but without Darcy and those friends of yours. He was sweet but hurting. A little rough around the edges. And so lonely. I told Deb to let you meet him but she refused. She didn't want anything to do with him. She wouldn't let me or Darcy see you if I told you about him. Then you moved to New York and I was going to try and arrange a meeting when he disappeared on his way home from school."_

"Does… does Darce know?"

_"God no. Darcy hasn't been able to keep anything from you since you were born. She wouldn't go along with this, Noah. Not even with Deb threatening her." She sighed again. "And I shouldn't have done it either. You deserved to know the truth. And I failed you. I'm so sorry."_

"Hey, I'm okay, Aunt Liz. We're fine," Puck assured her. Because it was. It wasn't his aunt's place to tell him about his little brother. It should've been one of his parents. But of course, neither of them was reliable in anything other than ruining their son's life. Well sons in the case of his father. Because he had a little brother. A little brother that was missing!

He chatted with Liz for a few more minutes before hanging up and slouching down so he was sprawled across the seat. He had a little brother. And he was missing. He didn't know how to think or how to feel. Most importantly he didn't know what, or even if, he should tell Steve when he called to check in with him later that evening. It's bad enough that Puck's crap relationship with his mother basically insured that Steve would likely never had a relationship with his youngest great grandchild. Now he had to tell him that there was yet another one that he would likely never to get to know because that one was missing or dead. School started about seven months before this. It had been about seven months since he disappeared. The chances of the kid still being alive were slim to none.

"So is it true?!"

Puck yelped at the sudden voice floating over him. He opened the eyes he didn't know he closed to see Santana and Donnie hovering beside him. He sat up straight, blinking in their not at all affected directions.

"Is what true?"

"Is it true that you have a little brother?" Donnie asked, clearly questioning his sanity. "Sam told Britt who told us and here we are."

"There you are," Puck repeated. "And yes, the rumors are true. Aaron Puckerman has yet another bastard child out there! And, oh yeah, he's missing."

"Awesome!" Santana clapped her hands together. Off the looks that she was receiving from Donnie and Puck, she smiled sheepishly. "Not awesome that he's missing but awesome that we finally have something to do since Tony is insisting on us staying here for two damn weeks."

"What do you mean us? I was just going to ask around."

"You really think local law enforcement is going to help you?" Santana asked, arching an eyebrow. Puck sighed.

"Ugh, you're right. Not really."

"But," Donnie chimed in with a grin. "They will help a federal agent."

"You want us to use our new badges to bully people into helping us?"

"No. I want us to use our new badges to open an investigation into the disappearance of the previously unknown great grandson of Peggy Carter and Steve Rogers," Donnie argued. "That's kind of a big deal. And besides, between your investigative skills, my science knowledge and Santana's ability to intimidate the world with a single look, we're bound to do a much better job at finding out what happened to your brother than the local PD would."

"True," Puck murmured. Santana nodded with a teasing grin playing on her lips. He found himself smiling in return. "So we're actually going to do this?"

"Hell yeah, we are," Santana beamed. "This is going to be great. Our first real investigation. And it's actually something I give a damn about."

Donnie snickered. "That's a hell of a ringing endorsement there for your application for Level Seven, San." Santana waved a dismissive hand. "So you going to tell your grandfather?"

"Not just yet. I think that I want to see what I find out first. I mean I'm obviously going to have to tell him. But I'd rather have an idea of where Jake is… if he's still alive before I spring this on him. He tends to… overreact when it comes to the people he cares about."

"You don't say," Santana and Donnie replied in unison.

"Okay, so he might go a little overboard for his friends and family."

"Dude, we've all read the history book," Donnie retorted. "He destroyed an entire HYDRA complex because he thought his best friend might still be alive."

"Yeah, it was Bucky. I'm pretty sure my grandfather would've started a whole new war if he thought that it would benefit Bucky somehow."

"And that was only his best friend. I'm pretty sure he would burn down more than a few complexes, evil Nazi organization or not for you, Darcy and even Sarah," Santana commented. "I think it's probably in the best interest of everyone for us to find Jake. And fast."

"Definitely," Donnie agreed.

Puck smiled, feeling a bit more hopeful. They were right. Between the three of them, their access to SHIELD's seemingly unlimited resources as well as Tony's actual unlimited set of resources, they definitely stood a better than average chance of finding his brother. And with any luck, they would find him alive. Puck didn't want to believe that the world could be so cruel as to dangle another family member for Steve and take him away. No, they were going to find him alive. They just had to.

* * *

Blaine was just returning to his seat beside Sam when his phone went off, echoed by chimes from Sam and Brittany's phones as well. Blaine only took his out of his pocket to keep up appearances. He merely needed to concentrate on the phone to know what the message said. Still, even looking at the words on the screen failed to fill him with any understanding of what he was supposed to be seeing. It was a text message in the group chat they had for just them. There was another one with Skye, Clint and Natasha but this one was just for the teenage residents of Avengers Tower. And its contents were mildly concerning and again, very confusing.

"They're opening an investigation into Puck's little brother?" Blaine asked aloud, his brow furrowed in confusion. "Since when did Puck have a little brother?"

"Since about ten minutes ago," Sam shrugged. "You missed a lot when you went out in the hall."

"Apparently," Blaine snorted. "So while those three are off doing their investigative thing that they do so well, what the hell are we supposed to do?"

Sam sighed. "Apparently be normal."

"We really need to get agent level clearance," Brittany murmured as if that was something she could get simply by asking. Then again, it was Brittany. It probably was. "This is going to be a boring couple of weeks."

"So you're in town for two weeks?" Kurt's voice sounded before any of them actually saw him slinking up to them. Blaine cursed under his breath, rising to glare at his ex-boyfriend. Said ex seemed naively oblivious to the tension radiating off the trio. Sam rested his hands on Blaine's shoulders, squeezing gently as he came to stand behind his boyfriend.

"What do you want, Kurt?" Blaine asked, already dreading whatever was about to come out of the other man's mouth.

"I just wanted to talk. We didn't end things on the best of terms when I graduated…"

"Yeah, because you accused my friends of only caring about me because my dad is rich," Blaine reminded, arching an eyebrow. "There really was no way that was going to end other than badly. And as you can see, you're very wrong. Because we're still friends."

He gave Sam a quick glance out the corner of his eye. The blonde was staring at Kurt with an intensely possessive look in his eye. The corners of his lips were tilted up. Brittany had long since checked out of the conversation and was staring at a spot just above Kurt's head, paying no mind to the man before her. Blain grinned. Yeah, they were still friends. Although there was definitely more than that between him and Sam these days. Before they landed, they mutually decided to keep their relationship under wraps for a little while. They were still working out the transition from best friends to boyfriends and didn't need any more outside scrutiny than what they already had from the rest of their group. But now standing here faced with the ex who tried his best to ruin Blaine's life, Blaine was at a loss for why he was doing anything other than declaring his undying love for Sam from the rooftops.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Artie started as he rolled over to the tense scene. "Am I interrupting anything? I can come back later."

"Yes, thank you," said Kurt.

"Of course not you're not interrupting anything, Artie," Blaine answered. He looked down at his friend who was wearing a somewhat sheepish expression but there was a steely determination in his blue eyes. "Did you think about it?"

"Yeah, actually I did. I called my mom," Artie answered, rubbing the back of his neck. "If I was to… do this… what does this mean? I mean for me in the future."

"Honestly, nothing," Blaine shrugged. "I mean SHIELD might want to know about you but I didn't exactly broadcast that I kept that one dose. So really, it doesn't have to mean anything. I think you know by now that I can definitely keep a secret."

Artie gave a shaky laugh. "Yeah, I think you can. So I think that I would like to do this. Take the shot, I mean."

"Wait," Sam interjected. His gaze shifted between Artie and Blaine. "Are you talking about giving Artie the Extremis?!"

"Yeah. I kept a dose," Blaine answered, biting his lip. "I just thought that it would be wrong to let it go when I could give to someone who really needed it. Not that Clint didn't need it at the time. And I know that there are a million people who could benefit but it's wrong to play God like that. But still Artie is our friend and…"

"You're amazing," Sam murmured before closing the already small distance between them and pressing their mouths together. Blaine let out an involuntary squeak before he lifted his arms to rest around Sam's shoulders, bringing him into a more comfortable position for them both. For a brief moment, the rest of the world slipped away and all he knew was the feel of Sam's lips against his. That is until the reality came crashing back in the form of a familiar pair giggling and the increasingly annoying sound of someone clearing their throat loudly.

Blaine pulled away from Sam reluctantly to face Artie and Brittany's amused faces and Kurt's red cheeked glare. He narrowed his eyes for a moment struggling to feel anything for his ex. It must hurt knowing that someone you cared about moved on. But Blaine couldn't find it in him to give a damn about Kurt's feelings these days. His betrayal and subsequent inability to accept the hurt he caused pretty much ensured that Blaine no longer cared one bit about his ex. And being with Sam taught him that Kurt never cared about him as a friend to begin with. For as long as Blaine knew him, Kurt only wanted a boyfriend. He didn't want Blaine for anything other than having him hang off his arm like he was another one of his many accessories. So yeah, Blaine really didn't give a crap what Kurt thought. Now Artie on the other hand…

"Since when has this been a thing?" Artie asked with a smile still on his lips.

"Uh, for about a month or so," Blaine shrugged. "Probably longer if you talk to one of these guys."

"It's been in the works since before their graduation," Brittany cackled. "But they didn't work it out until after the whole Extremis thing."

"So before we even broke up?" Kurt asked snidely. Sam growled and Blaine tightened the hold he still had on Sam's arm.

"Kurt, let's face facts. We've basically been broken up since you decided to blab about my dad. But the fact of the matter is that absolutely nothing happened between Sam and me until as Brittany pointed out, a month ago. And you were nothing more than an unfortunate bump in my life by that point. So I have nothing to feel guilty about when it comes to me and Sam."

Kurt's jaw tensed. "I didn't even know you were gay, Sam."

"I don't know what I am," Sam shrugged. "I guess I'm bisexual. But it doesn't really matter to me. I'm not into labels anyway. I love Blaine. That's all that really matters in the end."

"You love me?" Blaine asked, feeling his breath catch. Sam flushed red before running a hand through his hair.

"Yeah, of course I do. I mean I always thought that you knew. I mean I know that you love me. Or at least I thought you loved me."

"I do," Blaine whispered, leaning in again. "I love you, Sam."

"I love you too, Blaine," Sam murmured, closing the remaining distance.

"I guess it's like this every day at home, huh?" Artie mused.

Brittany giggled. "You have no idea. But it's perfect. They're totally soul mates. I've been waiting for this moment since the day I first dreamed about them all."

"Huh?"

Blaine pulled away from Sam for a brief moment to glare at the blonde. "One day, we're going to figure out what all of that means."

"Sure, you will," Brittany grinned before going back to staring at the spot on the wall. Blaine narrowed his eyes. Okay, the next order of business once the super spies got done trying to find Puck's long lost brother (also seriously?!), they were going to figure out what the hell Brittany was. Because if he was some kind of mutate and the others were alien hybrids, it was beyond obvious that Brittany was something too. And he was going to figure it out.

* * *

Santana felt like she was stepping into the past when she crossed the threshold to Jake Puckerman's bedroom. Everything from the color scheme to the music posters on the wall was a reflection of the older brother he never met. There was even an acoustic guitar propped up against the wall. Several notebooks were stacked haphazardly along the wall closest to the bed. She knew without even looking that the books would contain drawings and half-finished song lyrics. There was a picture on the desk of Jake and his mother, Tanisha Williams. She found herself drawn to the picture. It was just as eerie as the rest of the room. Now she knew why the other students were staring at Puck. Jake really did resemble him strongly.

"They're like clones," Donnie muttered as he turned on the long neglected computer on the desk. "It's weird that two brothers who have never met could have such similar tastes in like everything."

"It's not just their similar tastes I'm worrying about," Santana admitted. She knew that she had Donnie's attention despite his interest in Jake's computer. Tanisha had given them the passwords to his computer as well as Facebook and other social media before starting a hushed conversation with Puck. Santana and Donnie opted to give them time to figure out that complicated relationship while they investigated upstairs.

"What are you worrying about?"

"Think about it. Jake is Steve's great grandson. Puck is pretty much displaying super soldier tendencies even though he's watered down with the alien hybrid stuff. Imagine now a version of Puck without all the genetic anomalies."

"Okay, now I'm worried," Donnie sighed. He clicked on a few programs on the computer with no seeming pattern. But Santana knew her friend well. They were trained to work together as a team. She knew when he recognized something. And he knew that she was aware. "Something isn't right here."

"What do you mean? You found something? Did he post about where he was going?"

"Not exactly," Donnie answered, his brow furrowed. "I can't really say for sure but there's a lag on all of the pages that I'm going to. It's… it's similar to a program we studied back in the Academy. It's a tracking program. Nearly undetectable unless you were trained to see it. It's not your standard advertisement bot tracking. It's recording everything on his computer. From his friends on Facebook to what he's studying in school. It's meant to pick up patterns of behavior."

"Why would someone be tracking him through the computer?" Santana asked as she leaned over his shoulder. Donnie made no comment though as he was preoccupied with something on his tablet. He connected Jake's computer to his tablet and was running what looked like an analysis of the program he discovered. Finally there was a beep. "What's it say?"

"That's impossible," Donnie muttered. His tapped the screen rapidly and Santana knew better than to interrupt. Another beep sounded and Donnie shook his head. "That's just not possible. It can't be right."

"What's not possible?"

"This program… its way too sophisticated. It's not some software you pick up at Best Buy. It's not even something law enforcement would be using. It's a Government Issue program. And according to the signature on this software, it was developed by Stark Industries."

"Tony? You think Uncle Tony was spying on Jake?!"

"No," Donnie shook his head. "The tech is good but if he was going to spy on anyone, he would use something much better. No, this is the stuff he sells to contractors. But since 2008, the major buyer of Stark Industries technology has been SHIELD."

Santana sat down heavily on the side of the bed. "SHIELD? As in the very same SHIELD that employs us, SHIELD?"

"Yeah, SHIELD. I can get Blaine to check it out but I'm telling you, it's SHIELD. Someone inside of SHIELD has been using this program to spy on Jake Puckerman for weeks before he suddenly vanished."

"Is it possible that someone just stole the program?"

"Have you known anything of Tony's to fall in the wrong hands without swift and often painful retribution?"

"Valid point," Santana raked a hand through her hair. "So that's it. Someone inside of SHIELD has been spying on Jake. Then towards the end of September he just disappears?"

"I know that we didn't want to tell Steve right away but I think that we might want to revisit that idea. This officially feels like it's a bit higher than Level Six clearance."

Santana exhaled. "Screw telling Steve. I don't even know how we're going to tell Puck."

"Oh, I definitely do not want to be the bearer of that bad news." They exchanged quick glances. "Rock, paper, scissors?"

Five minutes later, and several embarrassing losses for Donnie, the pair were making their way back downstairs to where they could hear Puck and Tanisha still talking. They were sitting on a sofa in the living room. Though her face was dry now, Santana could see the tears on Tanisha's face. Puck didn't look much happier. His head shot up when he heard the pair entering the room.

"Hey, did you guys find anything?"

"Uh, yeah. We did," Donnie hedged. He glanced at Jake's mother. Puck nodded. "Did you know that your brother plays the guitar too?"

"Too?" Tanisha asked with a small smile. "You play, Puck?"

"Noah," Puck corrected absently. "And yeah. I've played since I was a kid. That's the only thing Dad and I had in common. I guess it's the one good thing he passed on to his sons. A love for music."

"That he did. Jake loved music," Tanisha said, quietly. "He loved that guitar. I could hardly even convince him to go to school without that guitar. He went everywhere with it. That's how I know that he didn't run away. He wouldn't run away without it."

"I know I never did," Puck murmured. Santana gave him a sad smile. It was true. There were so many nights that she can remember a much younger Puck showing up on her doorstep with his guitar case in hand and a bruise on his face. She knew that Rachel had similar stories from their childhood.

"You're the only people who don't think he just got tired of it all," Tanisha admitted with a heartbreakingly sad smile on her lips. "I know we don't have a perfect life but he was happy. We were happy. I know he wouldn't just leave and not tell me. Jake wasn't like that. He wasn't like…"

"Our father," Puck filled in for her. He leaned forward resting his hand on his stepmother's hand. "I promise you that we will find out what happened to Jake and I'll do my best to bring him back to you. No matter what."

"You're not like him either," Tanisha said after a long pause. "You're nothing like your father. Trust me, that's a compliment."

"The best kind," Puck said, giving her a bright smile.

They stayed with Tanisha for a little longer before making their way back to the car. The others hitched a ride back to Blaine's old home with Artie. That was good because Santana definitely wanted them to have this conversation without the others throwing in their opinions. They all meant well but ultimately this was Puck's family. His little brother and his grandfather. The next steps they took were all Puck's to decide. And damn if she didn't wish he would be forced to make that kind of decision. It just wasn't fair.

"So what didn't you guys want to tell me back at the house?" Puck asked when they were about ten minutes away from the Anderson home. Santana met his gaze through the rearview mirror. His eyes were still stormy and swirling with emotions. "I'm guessing it's something bad judging from the way that Donnie is clutching the steering wheel."

"It's… complicated," Santana answered. She sighed before realizing it was better to just get it over with. "We found a tracking software that was most likely issued to SHIELD on Jake's computer. It's likely that someone from SHIELD was tracking his whereabouts through social media and other forms of communication."

"Someone inside SHIELD?!" Puck sat up straight. "There's no way Nick, Coulson or Maria would hide this from us."

"Never," Donnie and Santana agreed in unison.

"So that means that someone out there knew that my dad had another kid and specifically that it was Jake. That also means that someone from SHIELD had something to do with the disappearance of my little brother."

"It would appear that way," Donnie said. "We don't know for sure. I'm going to have Blaine take a look at it. Maybe he can track down the name of the person who used the software to track him. But we don't really know anything for sure at the moment."

"Yeah, we do," Puck whispered. "We know that this is definitely over our heads. I should let my grandfather know."

Santana reached back to pat him on the knee before facing forwards again. She turned the radio down, low enough so that Puck could hear Steve on the other line but still loud enough to provide some privacy. Santana slumped down further in her seat. It had only been a month since the whole nightmare with Extremis. Since she almost lost Puck, Sam and Blaine. She was really hoping that they could've had just a little more time to be normal kids again. But life apparently wasn't built that way. Life was determined to keep messing with them, especially Puck and Blaine. But life didn't know who it was messing with. Because Santana was tired of this shit.

If anyone thought the devotion Steve Rogers showed for his best friend was extreme, they hadn't seen anything yet. Steve would start a war for Bucky. Santana would burn the world for what she called her own. And Noah Puckerman had been hers since the fifth grade. He was her true family. Him, Blaine, Sam, Brittany, Donnie, Phil, Nick and the Avengers. She would burn it to the ground and laugh in the ashes for her family.


	16. Dark Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which secrets, and old enemies, are revealed, Furt rear their hateful heads and a ship finally sails.

"I'm starting to think that our kids might just be allergic to the entire concept of normal. Like seriously, I think it deeply offends them on some weird personal level," Tony commented as he flopped down in the SHIELD conference room where the Avengers had been summoned. Clint snorted in agreement. Steve was also of the belief that their children were incapable of doing or existing in anything resembling normalcy and that's the only reason he didn't bother to respond to either man. They knew he agreed.

But seriously, the entire situation was insane. They sent the kids back to Lima so that they could get away from all of this for a while. Steve, and really of them, was worried that they would reach a breaking point soon. They were still teenagers and yet they had seen things that seasoned SHIELD agents had years to prepare for. They had barely known the Avengers for a year and yet they had been exposed to more craziness than any group of barely eighteen and nineteen years olds should have to deal with. They learned that most of them are alien hybrids, one of them was the great-grandson of a man that was physically only ten years older than them, one of them was now a human supercomputer and just a month ago the majority of them had been kidnapped and poisoned. All of that and it had only been a year since the Avengers formed and came crashing into their lives.

So when Tony saw the invitation for their former glee club teacher's wedding, the whole team was in agreement that they should send the kids back for a little while. Let them have a taste of normal. It was perfect. Annette wouldn't even be around. Ever since she found out her son now had superpowers, she was even more hands-off than ever before. She ranted about him being just like her "no good mutie" father before boarding a plan to Paris for her recovery. She wouldn't be missed. Especially not by Cooper who informed his mother that he was finally choosing between her and Blaine. She was less than happy that he chose his brother.

So really everything should be great. And it was until not even a day after the kids landed in Lima when Steve received a call from Puck. His kid sounded so small and confused on the phone. Suddenly, Steve couldn't come up with a single reason why they shipped any of them off to Middle America. Because it hadn't even been two months since his great grandson died, came back, only to be poisoned less than a week later. Despite his bravado and swagger, Steve knew that Puck was still reeling from that. He was too young to be facing his mortality that often. Even Clint was in his twenties before he started racking up the near-death experiences. Puck wasn't even nineteen yet! He was only a level six agent because of all the insanity happening to him. This trip was supposed to give him space from all the madness to regroup. Instead he got yet another curveball thrown at him. He had a little brother. A little brother who was missing. A brother that was younger than him but older than Sarah.

Steve really wanted to meet his grandson… just so he could punch him in the face. Everything he's learned about the man just begs for someone to do the job. But that was neither here nor there. Punching his wayward, deadbeat grandson would just have to wait. Because right now, there was someone else Steve intended to punch. And that was the SHIELD agent that had been keep tabs on his youngest great grandson. When Puck, Donnie and Santana got back to the house, they let Blaine have a crack at unlocking the owner of the tracking software belonged to. From there it was a simple matter of tracing the whereabouts of that particular agent. They were able to track his movements and from that found a surveillance video clearly showing Agent Jack Rollins of the STRIKE team dragging an unwilling teenager down the street and into a waiting SUV. There was a brief shot of the kid's face and Steve felt like all the air in the room disappeared. It was like he was looking at a younger version of Puck. A younger version of Puck that had just been kidnapped by a man who worked with Steve. Hell, who worked with Puck.

"How was Noah when you talked to him?" Natasha asked, placing a hand on Steve's arm. He sighed.

"Burying things. I could tell he was upset that I told him to stay in Lima. But honestly, until I figure out who inside SHIELD even knew about Jake, it's easier to keep him away from it. Besides, I figured Clint is going to tell him everything anyway."

"I'm glad you already know," Clint smirked.

For a moment, Steve let himself enjoy the brief break in tension and craziness. But that moment passed very quickly. Because someone took his great grandson. Someone hurt a member of his family and that was not okay. Puck was upset and that also was not okay. There were a host of issues that Steve had at the moment and he knew he wouldn't be satisfied until they spoke to Agent Rollins. Steve mentally steeled himself for the coming confrontation, hoping that he could keep his cool long enough to get the answers that they needed. A quick glance around the room showed that maybe his friends weren't as nonchalant about the seating arrangement as he previously thought.

Natasha was sitting to his left with her hand casually resting on his arm. Bruce was to his right. Clint was twirling an arrow on Bruce's free side while Thor was reading some gossip magazine on Natasha's other side. Tony was next to Clint and idly fiddling with what looked like a metal gauntlet on his wrist. Phil took a seat next to Thor and across from Tony. Steve didn't miss the gun holstered by his waist. Steve blinked at the formation. They were literally both shielding him as well as holding him back from potentially hurting Rollins.

They had been together for almost a year and Steve was still sometimes caught off guard but how much these people cared about him… about how much he cared about them. Even with the Howling Commandos, he still felt like it was just him and Bucky. But now he had people that were more than just a team to him. They were home. He forced himself to push away the pang of sadness he usually felt in these moments, thinking about how Bucky would love all of his new team. He would most love the fact that they knew he was a reckless idiot and had absolutely no problem calling him about it either.

He completely pushed those thoughts to the side as the door to the conference room opened and Nick appeared with a man that Steve vaguely recognized from the halls of SHIELD. He was also very good at what he did. He didn't bat an eye as he was led into a room full of angry superheroes. He merely sat down at the table with an easy grin on his face. Oh, Steve longed to punch that look right off his smug stupid mouth.

"Simmer down," Natasha whispered, tightening her grip on his arm. Steve huffed. Natasha smirked but relaxed her grip somewhat.

"Agent Rollins, do you know why I asked you to meet with us today?"

The man shrugged with one shoulder. "No, but I assumed it had something to do with needing another SHIELD agent with the Avengers Initiative since Barton's been on medical leave." Clint grit his teeth but said nothing. His eyes glowed somewhat, a telltale sign that Clint was Very Annoyed and that was part of the reason Clint was still on medical leave for real. Though physically he was never better, the Extremis did have some… minor side effects. The glowing eyes were the most problematic and a sign that the archer was reaching his limit. Steve felt Natasha tensing somewhat but she relaxed when Clint merely tilted his head back and closed his eyes. Steve let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"No, Agent Rollins, that is not why you've been asked to come here," Fury corrected with far more bite in his tone. "You were asked to come here because we've discovered some rather troubling information and wanted to get your insight."

"Sure, anything to help Earth's Mightiest Heroes."

"Excellent," Phil replied, taking over for Nick. "So does the name Jake Puckerman mean anything to you?"

There was a brief flash of hesitation but it was covered so quickly, Steve almost thought he made it up. The man forced a brighter smile. With an easy going shrug, he relaxed further into the cushioned chair beneath him.

"I can't say that it does. But I'm going to assume he's some relation to Agent Noah Puckerman. That's not a very common surname."

"No, it's not," Nick continued, crossing his arms over his chest. "It's also not especially common to be the great grandchild of one of the world's first successful super soldier."

Jack tensed briefly before shrugging once again. "I suppose you're right."

"Look Agent Rollins, I'm not sure what you've gotten yourself into but I predict it's only going to be another twenty minutes or so that this team is going to be willing or able to hold the good captain over here back. So I'm going to ask you again: does the name Jake Puckerman mean anything to you?"

"No," Jack replied, calmly. Clint scoffed, reaching for a file Steve hadn't even noticed near him and pushing it across the table. Jack eyed with an arched eyebrow. "What's this?"

No one answered and so the man opened the file. Steve may not have known that Clint had the folder with him but he definitely knew what would be in there. Screen capped images taken straight from the video of Jake Puckerman's kidnapping starring the man sitting opposite from the team. Jack turned red before paling rapidly. He glanced up from the images to the Avengers sitting across from him. The veneer of calm was gone. He knew he was screwed. Steve braced himself for the man's babbling and pleas. He wasn't ready for what actually happened.

"I could say this isn't me but we all know that's a lie. I really thought I was more careful than this," Jack shook his head. He sucked his teeth in thought. He was quiet for a few minutes before crunching down on something. Steve's eyes widened as memories of Erskine's assassin flashed through his mind. He knew what that was. Jack immediately started to shake as his body fell to the floor. Steve was by his side faster than anyone could register.

"No," Steve shook the man who was starting to foam at the mouth. "No, no, no, tell me where he is. Tell me where Jake is."

"It's…. too late," Jack gurgled. "He's… already… ours."

"No, I don't believe that. Tell me where he is."

Jack managed a grin even as he lay dying on the floor. Steve wanted to keep shaking him, force him to give up Jake's location. But he knew it was pointless. The man was willing to die to keep his secrets. The only people he knew that had conviction like that were…

"Hail HYDRA," the man whispered before taking his last breath.

Steve froze staring at the dead agent. It took several moments before he looked up at the rest of the Avengers who were now gathered beside him. They were all in similar states of shock. But he didn't know if that was because they heard what he heard or if it was because someone who was their colleague just decided to off himself in the fourth floor conference room in order to avoid telling Steve where his great grandson was.

"Okay, so maybe this is a used to be hearing impaired thing but," Clint started, "can someone please tell me that I didn't hear what I thought I just heard."

"I wish I could but I can't. Not if you heard him say 'hail HYDRA," Tony mumbled. His face was blank before finally turning towards a silent Nick. "How the hell did a HYDRA loyalist get hired as an agent of SHIELD? How the hell is HYDRA still a thing?! I thought it died with the Red Skull."

"That's what we all thought," Nick replied, not taking offense to Tony's accusation. "But clearly there was a mistake made somewhere down the line."

"This can't be happening," Steve said, quietly. "This can't be… I died believing that I stopped HYDRA. They're supposed to be….. And they're not. They're still here. And they're in SHIELD?! You heard him. He was clearly not working alone."

"We don't know if HYDRA is really back or if Rollins was just an extremist who identified with their beliefs," Phil tried, but Steven could tell even he didn't believe his own words. Steve knew he definitely didn't believe them.

When he was on the plane, crashing towards the frozen water below, he felt at peace. Though he was leaving Peggy, and unknowingly their unborn child, behind, he was also taking HYDRA down with him. Waking up after seventy years to find that everyone you knew and loved was either dead or too ill to remember you was painful. Finding out you had a daughter who is also gone hurt even more. But Steve made it through knowing that Peggy built something amazing alongside Howard Stark. She raised their daughter and though he never got to meet her, Steve knew that he got the next best thing in Puck and Darcy. So he was okay with everything because he knew that HYDRA was gone. And now… they weren't. They weren't gone. They were just in SHIELD. The very thing Peggy built from the ground up was infected. Steve shivered and then started when he felt a warm hand on his arm.

"I know you're upset," Nick started, looking down at Steve. "But we need to think about this logically if we're going to find out how deep this threat goes and where Jake is. That's still a priority for me. We're going to find Jake and we're going to weed out the HYDRA loyalists."

"How?"

"Barton." Clint looked around surprised to hear his name. Nick rolled his eye. "If Rollins was HYDRA, I'm going to go out on a limb and assume the rest of his team was too. He wouldn't go to the bathroom without Rumlow's approval. Ever since your medical leave was extended, Rumlow has been expressing a lot of interest in you. I think it's time you repay that interest."

"You want to see if they're going to try and recruit me into their evil Nazi death club?" Clint asked with a smirk. Steve smiled despite the churning in his gut.

"Try not to join for real," Phil chided him. Clint gave him a look coupled with the beginnings of a pout. "But in all honesty, do be careful. And keep the Extremis upgrades to yourself. We definitely don't want them figuring that out."

"Of course," Clint replied.

"And the rest of us?" Tony asked.

"You, Thor, and Dr. Banner will remain here in New York. I was supposed to be meeting with Secretary Pierce in D.C. regarding Project Insight and I still will. But I will also be starting a quiet investigation into just how far this HYDRA connection goes. Rogers and Romanoff will be accompanying me."

Steve exhaled softly. It was a solid plan and the best they could offer at the moment. And he knew that. But he still felt off kilter. HYDRA was alive and apparently doing well enough to kidnap his great grandson. And now Clint was going to try and infiltrate the STRIKE team while they went to ask questions in D.C. None of this seemed right.

"Well, solid planning as always, bossman, but now comes the really hard part," Tony quipped leaning forward in his seat.

"Is it how to get the dead guy out of the conference room without people noticing?" Bruce mused. "Because I've been wondering that one myself."

"We got this," Natasha and Clint declared in unison. And it was moments like this that reminded them all that Clint and Natasha were both trained assassins and had been since before they reached adulthood. He shook his head with a small smile.

"I figured Bonnie and Clyde had that under control," Tony pointed out, also smiling. "No, the really part is who is going to tell the kids, especially Puck."

"Not it!" Clint yelled before popping out of seat. Natasha followed and within minutes, they were dragging the body of Jack Rollins out the conference room. Steve watched them go before turning back to the suddenly less full table. He blinked at Thor and Bruce who were the only two left behind.

"I hate them," Steve sighed. "So I suppose neither of you wants to be the one to make that call, huh?"

"I would but… stress, the Other Guy…." Bruce trailed off. "Yeah, I just don't want to."

"How do you make a call?" Thor asked, eyes wide. "Is it like sending a raven?"

Steve glared at the Asgardian, who continued to stare back innocently. Yeah, Steve might have been willing to buy that oh so innocent act if it wasn't for the fact that Thor had a brand new iPhone in his pocket that he was using to send texts to Jane and Darcy all day. The others might still believe his crap about not understanding how technology worked but Steve was on to him. He knew he was lying. But damn if he could prove it.

With another world weary sigh, Steve picked up his own phone and dialed his great grandson's number. The fact that the kid picked up on the second ring showed how anxious he was. And Steve knew it was only going to get worse before it hopefully got better. And that was just how he felt about this conversation. He was terrified to think about how much worse this whole situation as going to get before, if, it got better.

Santana chewed on her lip as she sat at the bar for the reception following what she and the other tolerable gleeks were calling 'The Wedding That Wasn't'. The fact that Will had no shame about continuing the reception even after his bride to be pulled a runner showed just how far down the rabbit hole of sanity he had gone. But still it would be a waste of good food and alcohol. Though she knew that the man was far gone when he was blatantly ignoring that his mostly underage guests were all getting plastered. Well, all of them save for the one who probably should and clearly could not. And that brought her back to the source of her anxiety. Her constant source of anxiety: Noah Puckerman.

"Where is he putting them?" the bartender asked as she served yet another drink to Santana's sulking partner seated slightly down the bar from her.

Santana sighed and shrugged. How did one explain that a combination of alien DNA and super soldier formula made getting drunk incredibly difficult? It seemed the older Puck got, the more Steve's DNA seemed to take ahold. Gone were the days when he could get drunk. Now he was lucky if he could get a buzz. And while she usually was not a fan of his drinking to forget mentality, she needed something to take his edge off. Hell they all did.

It had been about three days since Steve dropped the biggest bombshell of their lives, and that included the revelations that Blaine was Tony's son, Puck was related to Steve and mostly all of them were some kind super powered freak. So yeah, that was definitely saying something. But no, HYDRA was alive. As an agent of SHIELD, Santana was all too familiar with the reign of terror that HYDRA wreaked when they were at their peak. She didn't want to know what they would be like now after years of hiding in the shadows. She also didn't want to know what they could possibly doing with Jake Puckerman. She understood why the team wanted them to stay in Lima but at the same time, she really did think that they would all be better off going back home. Or at least she and Puck would be. Everyone seemed to be settling back into life in Lima just fine.

She turned away from watching Puck's attempts to murder his liver to scan the room for her friends. Brittany and Donnie were dancing together. It was actually more like Brittany was desperately trying to coax something more than just awkward shuffling out of Donnie. Blaine and Sam weren't too far away. They were basically cuddling on the dance floor, swaying softly to a song that really didn't require slow dancing. Santana smirked and started to turn around when she saw Kurt stalking over to the couple. She could hear that high pitched shriek of jealousy even over the beat of the music. But she wasn't really interested in intervening until she saw Finn follow after his stepbrother when Sam finally stepped between Blaine and Kurt to keep the irate soprano from yelling in his face anymore.

"This could be fun," Puck mumbled. Santana whipped her head around to see that Puck was already sliding off the barstool with an almost feral grin playing on his lips. His body was tense and it reminded her of a cobra that was about to strike. Oh this was not going to be fun. She pulled a few bills out of her clutch and tipped the waitress before chasing after her best friend.

She found him standing in front of Sam and Blaine, who were now standing side by side. That grin was still there as he stared Finn down. Santana was secretly happy that the Extremis was totally gone from his system because she wasn't sure that he wouldn't be breathing fire down on the clueless idiots that were their former classmates.

"Problem, Hudson?" Puck asked. His voice was like a growl. It made the fine hairs on her arms stand at attention. Brittany and Donnie were suddenly hovering on the sidelines, also feeling the pull from Puck's emotions.

"Yeah, your friend was messing with my brother," Finn retorted, not understanding how close to death he was in that moment.

"Is that what was happening?" Puck drawled, grin growing ever wider. "Because it looked to me like your brother was interrupting my friends who were dancing. Is that a fair assessment of what happened, friends?"

"Yeah, sounds about right," Blaine answered. Santana narrowed her eyes. The little weasel knew exactly what was going to happen and instead of helping them calm it down, he was all about escalating it even further. She hate loved that boy so much.

"It also looks like you were coming over here to start some shit with my boys," Puck continued. He cocked his head to the side. "Sammy and Blaine are too good for that. Me? Oh, I've been itching for a fight all week. So make a move, Finnocence."

For a brief moment, Santana hoped that Finn learned some kind of self-preservation in the time they were apart. That he could see that there was no hope for a win in this fight. That he's never really had any kind of advantage over Puck in their lifetimes and that was before Puck learned how to kill a man with a paperclip. That was before Puck was so desperate for a fight, for any kind of release for the stress, tension and anxiety that he was he was willing to overlook the fact that Finn wasn't anywhere on his level. Maybe Finn would clue in and….

"Okay, then bring it on."

"Never mind," Santana huffed. "He's an idiot. Sammy?"

"On it," Sam answered. He wrapped a hand around Puck's bicep. "Come on, bro. We're okay. Finn and Kurt are not worth it."

"Oh, but I think they are," Puck whispered, taking a closer to Finn. Sam was clearly exerting way more energy in pulling him back than Puck was in moving forward. This wasn't good. She took a deep breath trying to figure out what to do. She wondered if Blaine's computer thing could work on the brain. After all the brain was just an organic computer. It was a theory that she was thinking about for a while but she was about to ask him to put it into practice when the unexpected happened.

Puck's forward halt was suddenly cut off by a blur of satin and pink. They all blinked at Rachel's sudden appearance between her two exes. And though she may have been engaged to Finn just a few months ago, her eyes were only for Puck. Puck growled and made a token move to push past her but Rachel countered that but stretching up on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck. He stood straight still for just a moment before completely deflating. His head burrowed into the crook of her neck and her hands were rubbing circles on his back.

"It's going to be okay, Noah," she crooned. "It's all going to be okay."

Santana let out the breath she didn't even know she was holding. She smiled almost against her will. Rachel would always be the greatest weakness and strength Puck had. Santana knew that her relationship with Puck often blurred lines of romantic and platonic to those on the outside. But she knew that they were strictly friends and neither ever wanted to cross that line. Mostly because he was already head over heels in love with a certain loudmouth diva. And if Santana was being completely honest her heart would always belong with a certain dancing blonde. So while a part of her was jealous that only Rachel could calm Puck down, she didn't begrudge them this. Because if anyone deserved love, it was Puck.

"Well, that's enough for one night," Brittany announced, looping her arm through Santana's. "Junior Avengers Assemble!"

Sam snorted even as he started to guide the tangled embrace of Rachel and Puck towards the door. Blaine followed but only after retrieving Artie and the blonde cheerleader Will thought could replace Santana and Quinn. The pair had been talking quietly throughout the night with Kitty planted on a seat next to Artie's wheelchair since Emma ditched her wedding. It was cute. As the entourage left the building, Santana caught Mike's gaze. She winked prompting the man to smile and pull an all too willing Mercedes along with him.

And that's how they found themselves on a suddenly private beach (Blaine bought the damn beach. He really was a Stark) goofing off under the moonlight. She smiled as she lay back on a towel feeling relaxed for the first time in a long time as she watched her friends. Puck and Rachel were sitting close together, heads bowed, but tension gone. Sam and Blaine were back to swaying to music only they could hear. Mike was threatening to push Mercedes in the water with Donnie and Brittany egging them on. And Kitty and Artie were sprawled out on their own towel singing along to the radio they found god only knew where. In that moment, Santana got it. This is what the team had in mind when they shipped back to Lima. This is what they wanted. They wanted them to just be normal teenagers, even if it was just a brief amount of time. And Santana aimed to please.

Puck had to admit this was not how he imagined the night going after he threatened Finn. He really thought at best he was going to be stripped of his badge. Worst case, locked up on the Raft or the Fridge with the other super powered threats. But instead, he was sitting on a beach holding hands with Rachel Berry while the friends he cared most about in this world ran around, laughing, dancing and singing. It was a definite counterpoint for how he was feeling earlier that evening. But it wasn't necessarily an unwelcome change in his emotions. It was definitely helping… somewhat. He felt Rachel lean into his shoulder.

"So you going to tell me what all of that was about?" she asked, squeezing his hand lightly. Puck shrugged. "No, I know you, Noah Puckerman. You're not trying to fight the world unless you have a reason. So what's going on?"

"It's just… it's complicated."

"SHIELD?"

"Yeah, SHIELD," Puck sighed. "It's not that I don't want to tell you. It's just that I'm not sure how much of this I can tell you. How much of this I can tell you that you would even believe."

"Why not start at the beginning?"

He sighed again before really looking at her. This was Rachel. This was the same woman who had seen him at his best and his worst. And yet she always looked at him like he hung the moon. Like she always believed in him. Almost as if she knew what he was thinking, her hand tightened around his. A silent promise to never leave him.

"So you know how Steve is my great grandfather, right? Well, he's not the only questionable relative I have."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning we're aliens!" Santana chimed in from somewhere down the beach. Puck rolled his eyes.

"Aliens?" Rachel repeated arching an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Puck smiled somewhat. "We're alien hybrids. And by we, I mean Sammy, Santana, myself and our friend Donnie. We have another friend who is like us too. Blaine is whole other kettle of fish."

"Okay, so explanations. Now," Rachel poked him. He laughed before launching into the more detailed explanation of the past few months. He didn't realize how good it felt to have someone to talk to who wasn't knee deep in this crap. Especially this woman.

"So that's it," he said, as he finally finished. "I just found out that I have a little brother and he's been kidnapped by not at all defunct group of Nazis."

"Whoa," Rachel murmured. "That is a lot. That is a lot to deal with. Not going to lie." She nudged him again. "But I am going to reassure you that you will find him. Jake, I mean. You're going to find him."

"You know this?"

"I do," she said, firmly. "Because I know you. When you put your mind to something, you never fail. And the one thing you never fail is your family."

"My mother and sister would beg to differ.'

"They don't count. They're not your family. Sure they're biologically related to you but they've never been your family, Noah," Rachel countered. "Those people over there? The Avengers? They're your family. They're the ones you won't let down."

"What about you?" he asked, hesitantly. "What are you?"

Rachel gave him a soft smile. "Anything you need me to be."

"I just need you to be Rachel Berry," he glanced down at their still entangled hands. "And what do you want me to be?"

"Honestly?"

"Yes."

"Everything," she replied easily. Puck grinned in response.

"I guess that's something we have in common then. Because we both want me to be your everything. But you really want to know what I want?"

"Hmm?" she murmured, leaning in even closer.

"I want the same from you," he whispered, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. "But I think that you already are honestly."

"I think so too. And I know, Noah, that you can't always tell me everything. But I want to know as much as you can tell me. I want you in my life. No matter what we have to do to make that happen."

"Even if I married you, moved you out to a farm while I was out playing superhero?"

Rachel wrinkled her nose. "Even if you did that. But seriously don't do that. That sounds like a horrible life."

"It really does." He laughed at her look of mock disgust before lying back on the towel spread underneath them. Rachel didn't wait before she was lying on her chest, staring down at him with a look mixed with mischief, love, and fondness. He didn't know how he thought he could ever do this without her. This woman meant everything to him. "I love you, Rachel."

"I know," she whispered before pressing a gentle kiss to his outraged lips. She smiled. "I love you too."

And for that brief moment, everything was as good as it was going to get. His brother was still missing. HYDRA was still around. But he had his friends. He had family that cared about him so much they wanted to keep him safe even at the expense of alienating him for good. But even more than that, he finally had clarity as to where he and Rachel stood. There was no more ambiguity between them. They were finally on the same page. Life was as good as it was going to get.

"Clint?! What are you doing here?"

Puck sat up at Sam's surprised yell. He blinked and realized that his mentor really was standing on the beach with them. He hadn't heard a jet or a car, so he had no idea where the man could've come from. That is until he saw the hulking form of Thor hovering by the edge of the water. Brittany was by his side and they were exchanging hushed words urgently. He wanted to question that but suddenly Clint was tearing across the beach to stand by Puck's side. His eyes were wide and there were fine lines of stress and tension surrounding the blue grey orbs.

"Clint? What's going on?"

"I'll explain later. But for right now, I have to get you out of here."

"Me?! Why? What's happening?"

Clint ran a hand through his hair, looking way older than his twenty eight years. "It's Fury. Shit… he's uh, he's dead."

Puck swallowed. "What?"

"Yeah, he's gone. Someone killed him."

"Who?"

"If you believe the popular consensus, Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff."

And just like that, everything sucked. Optimism was for suckers.


	17. The World Turned Upside Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Ward gets read into the situation, makes a decision and some friends.

Grant Ward would like the record of his life to show that he never truly set out to be in a Nazi worshiping cult. Although, looking back at his family and the way they were raised, it really wasn't surprising that he ended up this way. Still, there were moments when he had… regrets. Mostly any time he was dragged to one of the meetings with the rest of the loyal HYDRA lackeys by Garrett. He knew it was because he wasn't a true believer in HYDRA's ideals. He was loyal to Garrett… although he really wondered why sometimes.

It wasn't just that the man was foaming at the mouth crazy, which he was, but it was also that while he expected Ward to be loyal to him and blindly follow and trust him, Garrett had no such feelings towards his young trainee. Ward was nothing more than a tool for Garrett, a pawn. He was on Coulson's team to watch the older man and report back. Garrett didn't have any great need for Grant Ward as a person. It could've easily been Rollins or Rumlow that got the job. But it went to Ward because Garrett believed him to be a loyal dog that would bark when told and rollover otherwise. He didn't get the job because he was trusted. He got it because he was stupidly loyal to the first adult who told him he could be something. The first adult who noticed him and offered to take him away from the horribleness that was his life. But there were strings. He should've known. There were always strings.

Well, not always…

His eyes flickered towards the corner of the conference room where Phil and Clint were standing close together, heads bowed and whispering furiously. Sometimes there weren't strings attached. Sometimes an offer for a chance to be something more… to be a part of something great was actually just that. It was hard for him to remember why he chose to follow Garrett when he saw Phil and Clint together. Phil trusted Clint without a doubt. Clint could tell his mentor right now that the sky was orange and Phil would probably roll with it without a second thought. Ward was envious. And once again questioning the logic behind remaining with a maniacal Nazi who didn't even trust you to tie your own shoelaces without instructions.

"Okay, the last of you are here," Phil announced as Sharon walked into the room with Bobbi Morse in tow. Clint slipped away to take his original place on the other side of the room. Phil moved to stand at the head of the table looking around at the rather crowded table. "I know you're all wondering why I asked you to come here today, especially in such a cryptic manner."

Cryptic was a bit of an understatement. Ward had been minding his business playing an intense game of Candy Crush when his phone suddenly alerted him that his presence was needed at the Avengers Tower. As soon as he tried to check the message, it disappeared. All further attempts at trying to retrieve the message from his phone nearly shut it down permanently. He finally decided to just show up and see what the hell they wanted.

The Avengers had been laying low for the most part since Director Fury was allegedly murdered by Rogers and Romanoff. Of course, Ward knew the truth. Not that anyone with a half a brain cell would ever think SHIELD's golden boy and star assassin would kill the man they both respected. But it turns out that there were a lot of agents lacking brain cells… or in possession of HYDRA membership cards because SHIELD was on an agency wide manhunt to track down the two rouge agents. And the Avengers, while not exactly distancing themselves from the pair, were suspiciously quiet. Rumlow's team personally looked over the Tower and found no sign of them. Not that Ward thought they would. It would be a little too obvious for the fugitives to hide out at the giant Tower with the A emblazoned on the side. No, Romanoff wasn't getting found until she wanted to be found or until she cleared not only her name but also that of Steve Rogers. And Ward knew just how determined the Russian was. She knew she was innocent. She wasn't going to rest until whoever was responsible for not only killing the director but also framing her and Rogers was going down. The woman was a force to be reckoned with when it came to the people in her life that she claimed as her own. Prior to the Invasion that list only included Clint, Director Fury and Coulson. But now that included the entirety of the Avengers and all the teenagers they acquired along the way.

And on that note, said teenagers were also crowded around the spacious conference room where Ward had been escorted along with a similarly confused, yet awed, Fitz and Simmons. When they got inside the room, he really wasn't at all surprised to find that Skye was already there sitting beside Puckerman, Lopez, Gill, Stark Junior and two blondes that Ward really didn't recognize. Barton was perched on a shelf built into the wall directly above where Puckerman was sitting with a carefully constructed blank expression on his face. Every so often, Clint's left leg, which was dangling down, would gently nudge the teen on the shoulder. Ward noticed the kid's lips twitched every time. Ward snorted, taking a seat opposite from the teens. Simmons settled on Skye's free side while Fitz made a beeline for Trip who strolled into the room just behind them. Ward didn't know what this was all about but he was growing even more apprehensive with each passing moment.

That feeling didn't lessen when the rest of the Avengers strolled in followed by Coulson and Melinda. Now Ward was officially nervous. Everything from the way they were all invited to this meeting and the fact that it was in Avengers Tower, a place that even HYDRA has yet to infiltrate, made Ward anxious. He knew it was because he was the only one with a HYDRA membership card. Although according to Rumlow, Clint was well on his way to joining the cause. Ward had to fight the urge to roll his eyes at that one. The archer wasn't a level 10 agent just because Fury decided it would be the easiest way to shut him up. Okay, that was part of the reason because Clint was a right nuisance when he was a teenager. So yeah, it was partially to get him to shut up but also because Clint was damn good at whatever aspect of his job he focused on. That included being undercover. Ward glanced up at Clint. He shivered slightly when the full force of Clint's blue gray eyes locked on his. He knew. He had to know. That's what this was about. Clint knew Ward was HYDRA and they were going to…

"HYDRA is back," Phil continued, oblivious to Ward losing focus. He dragged his eyes away from Clint to focus on his current commanding officer.

"That's impossible," Sharon protested. "HYDRA has been gone since WWII. We would've heard something about them by now."

"Maybe we would've heard something if there weren't people actively trying to squash the rumors," Lopez spoke up. "But the real reason we haven't heard anything is because HYDRA isn't just back. It's inside SHIELD. It has been since WWII."

With that Coulson, Stark Sr. and Melinda launched into a recap of everything Ward already knew but was still appropriately surprised to hear about coming from the other team. He realized that they knew far more than anyone thought they did. Pierce really did need to reign in Garrett. The older man was a loose cannon at this point. Ward was long of the belief that if HYDRA got exposed it was either going to be because of Garrett or one of the musclebound idiots on the STRIKE team. Looks like he was right.

"Damn," Trip murmured, ducking his head somewhat. He sighed and looked up at Coulson. "Is that why you called us?"

"Yes. The people in this room are the only ones that can or are trusted," Phil said, looking around the table. Ward swallowed the lump growing in his throat at that unearned vote of confidence. "What we need to do next is figure out who is or isn't HYDRA. You all are the only ones I can be confident won't be on the side of HYDRA when the dust settles." Ward shifted in his seat somewhat.

"We need to find out how deep this goes so I can find my brother and clear my grandpa and Natasha's names."

"And how exactly are we supposed to do that?" Bobbi countered. "It's not like we can just waltz up to people and ask if they're part of a Nazi worshiping organization."

Ward was prepared to deal with a childish retort or an indignant counter but nothing like that happened. Instead, Puck just sat back in his seat with a steely determination Ward had never seen on the teen before. But he had seen that particular expression on the kid's mentor. Ward was more than familiar with that look too. It usually meant that Clint was going to do something utterly and completely stupid that would probably save the day. But Ward was at a loss for what Puck could possibly pull that would stop HYDRA.

"No," Lopez said suddenly. Her head was cocked to the side and she was staring at him with a knowing glint in her eyes. "Shut up, we're not doing that."

"We're running out of options here. You have any better ideas?"

"No, but anything would be better than that!"

"Okay, anyone not on their weird partner bestie wavelength want to explain what's going on?" Trip cut in before the partners could continue their argument. Puck glanced at the rest of the teens gathered at the table, who nodded after a moment of hesitation. "Noah?"

"Well, the Cliff's Notes version is this: me, Sam, Santana, Skye and Donnie are all alien hybrids and will one day develop superpowers. Well, they will. I already got mind. I can hear and see things people think they're hiding. I could find every HYDRA agent in this agency in minutes. Especially if Blaine could help me figure out how to use my power to scan more than one person at a time."

Blaine chewed on his bottom lip, clearly not okay with what he had to say. "He's not entirely wrong. It wouldn't be out of the realm of possibilities to build something that could further Puck's psychic reach. I could built it two, three hours. Probably less with Dad and Britt helping. It is kind of a valid option."

"Except it's really not," one of the blondes, Sam, argued. Stark Jr. gave him a look but the blonde was oblivious to it. "This shouldn't even be up for discussion."

"Why not?!" Bobbi asked incredulously. "We could clean HYDRA out without bringing SHIELD down in the process. Short of finding someone to rat out the other HYDRA agents, this really does sound like our best option. It's genius!"

"No, it's not!" Lopez snapped, slamming her hand down on the table with a surprising amount of force. Ward was happy that he wasn't the only one looking confused at the vehemence behind her protests.

"Santana, what isn't Noah telling us about this whole power thing?" Trip asked, pointedly ignoring Puck's protests in the background.

"They're not permanent yet," Santana answered. She let out a shaky breath running a hand through her hair. "It's not a part of who he is now. In order to access those powers, he has to die. Remember last month with the whole electrocution thing? When he died, the alien part came back a little stronger. It gave him an early sneak peek at what he would ultimately be able to do. But he has to die first."

"Is that why you didn't want to see us after you were electrocuted?!" Sharon gasped. "Because you were accessing alien powers that made you see things? Oh, Noah, when this is all over we will be having a long talk about keeping secrets. But for now, Santana and Sam are right. That is not an option."

"It's my decision!"

"And to quote a very wise man, I recognize that you have made a decision, but given that it's a stupid-ass decision, I've elected to ignore it," Santana growled. She jabbed a finger into the left of his chest. "Your heart should've exploded. I did the research. I looked it up. By all accounts, you should be super dead and there shouldn't have been any part of your heart left to revive. But you got lucky that day and I don't know how. But I'm not letting you stupidly risk your life for something that only has a possibility of working. We don't know for sure that your powers will bring you back this time. This time you could just die and stay dead. As much as I want HYDRA dead and gone, I'm not risking your life to do it."

Ward watched as the room very quickly divided into those who were against the plan and the ones who were on the fence. Not surprisingly given how protective they were of Puck on a good day, Santana, Sharon and Trip were the first ones to veto the whole thing. Tony, Sam and Donnie were also quick to negate the whole plan too. What did surprise Ward was that Clint wasn't vocally against it. If anything, he seemed almost begrudgingly reconciled to the idea. And Ward wasn't the only who noticed.

"Really, Clint?" Sharon asked, brown eyes reflecting the betrayal she felt.

"Unless you can think of a better option," Clint shrugged. To the average observer (also known as anyone who hasn't known the man since he was seventeen), he seemed almost nonchalant and uncaring. But Ward knew better. He saw the tightly clenched jaw. The barely perceptible twitch in his right hand. Clint was stressed out and it was starting to take its toll. He didn't want Puck doing this anymore than the rest of them but it was obvious that Clint just wanted this over, one way or another.

"Thor, you too?" Tony spoke next. "You're really going to stand there and hit one of the kids with enough lightening to knock out his heart? You think you have it in you to end his life?"

Thor hesitated for a brief moment before looking over at Puck. A long moment passed before Thor held an arm up. His hammer flew to his outstretched hand. "I don't want to do this. I am as attached to the young ones as you all are. But this is Noah's decision. He feels that this is the best way to clear the name of his grandfather and the Lady Natasha. Then I will support him. In any way that I can."

"Damn it," Dr. Banner grumbled. "At least let me get my bag before we start frying people." He was up and out of the room before Ward even processed that he was moving.

Sharon shook her head. There were tears welling in her eyes. Whatever drama existed between Sharon and Puck before the kid enrolled in the academy, it was evidentially gone now. Ward had only ever seen the woman this upset when Trip was believed to be in a plane that was shot down on a mission gone totally wrong aka HYDRA trying to clean house. "Noah, this is insane!"

"It's the only way, Share. I'm so sorry," Puck murmured. He gave her a weak smile. "It's going to be okay. But you don't have to stay. I get it. It's okay. You too, Trip."

Sharon shook her head about to protest when she suddenly clamped her mouth shut. She let out a soft sound that almost resembled a sob before rushing out of the room. Trip and Bobbi promised Puck that they would go after her and also call someone else named Darcy. Ward didn't pay too much attention to that. Instead, he was focused on the teenager at the center of all the panic and flailing.

Maybe it was because Ward spent so much time around Clint when they were younger but he could see right through Puck's calm façade. The kid was terrified. He didn't want to do this but Ward also knew he wasn't going to back down. Puck clenched his jaw before pulling off his shirt. Ward's eyes widened at the four faint burn marks still prominently displayed on his chest, no doubt left behind by the leads from the Taser. But what really caught Ward's attention was the Lichtenberg figure etched on the kid's side. Not that he doubted the story but that Taser must have been ridiculously overcharged in order to leave behind a scar commonly only found in people struck by lightning.

"You're really going to go through with this, aren't you?" Ward asked, quietly. Puck slowly turned his attention from his slightly trembling hands to meet Ward's gaze. He found no fear there. The kid was just ready to do what needed to be done.

"It's my family. I would do anything for them."

Ward sat back completely mind blown. He knew that his own view on family was extremely warped. Not just from his own experiences growing up but also from his exposure to Garrett. But still, the lengths they were willing to go through for one another. It was… confusing. He felt that same stab of jealousy he always felt when confronted by the fact that he was effectively alone. Even as one of the higher ranking agents within HYDRA, he didn't have this same kind of support. He didn't inspire the same kind of loyalty in anyone else. There wouldn't be anyone willing to risk having their heart explode just to clear his name. Even if this meeting had taken a different turn and he was exposed as a HYDRA agent, Ward couldn't think of a single person that would come rescue him. They would expect him to die for the cause. They didn't care about him except what value he could add to HYDRA's mission. There would be no one to catch him if he fell. Well… that wasn't quite sure.

His gaze drifted first to Clint then to Skye and finally to Coulson. The trio were clustered together with May. He couldn't make out what they were saying but the frequent concerned glances in the Puck's direction was kind of a giveaway as to what they were talking about. Despite everything Ward knew that Clint had his back. They bickered all the time. Almost eighty percent of the time they were together, they were trying to kill each other. But Clint was family as far as he was concerned. Same went for Coulson. He never held Ward's attitude towards Clint against him. If anything Ward thought that Coulson definitely didn't mind. Judging by all the times Coulson forced the pair of them together before they turned twenty and were done with playing nice, Ward really did think that Coulson enjoyed watching them bicker.

And then there was Skye…. Skye was…. She was Skye. She was rapidly becoming one of the few people in this world that he enjoyed. She was a reason for him to keep going in this miserable world. But would she care about if she knew the truth? Would she still think he was worth her time if she knew that he was really working for HYDRA? Would she still try to rope him into movie nights with Fitz and Simmons? God, would they even look at him the same way? Could he even keep these people in his life?

The thought of any of the people he called teammates looking at him differently hurt. It was different than the hurt he felt when he disappointed Garrett. Garrett's affection came with strings. But no one expected anything from him here. Coulson didn't expect him to serve him blindly. Fitz, Simmons and Skye (wonderful Skye) didn't want anything from him when they forced him to watch  _The Incredibles_. Clint never expected anything from him at all. They didn't want anything from him and yet he was amongst the people they trusted the most. It did not escape his attention that the teenaged assets Fury protected were actually alien hybrids. That was definitely not something anyone knew at HYDRA and yet Puck just casually admitted in front of Ward like he trusted him. He trusted him. This stupid loyal kid who was about to literally about to kill himself to help his family actually trusted the same guy who's never been particularly nice to him. Ward shook his head.

Time to be worth it….

"John Garrett," he said out loud. It took a moment for the various conversations in the room to quiet enough to hear him. He felt more than he saw their attention focus on him. He closed his eyes and let out a quiet breath. "Garrett, Rumlow and his whole crew, Jasper Sitwell, way too many people to count lower but I could find out. A few senators. Oh, and Pierce. He's like the head honcho these days." He opened his eyes and found them all staring at him. He tried to force a smile but the effort failed. "I'm so…."

He trailed off as brown haired missile shot into his arms. Instinctively, he folded his arms around Skye and leaned into her familiar embrace. She was hugging him tightly but not saying a word. Finally, she pulled back with a teary smile. He brushed away one of the stray tears that escaped. Her smile grew wider.

"What was that for?"

"For not letting Puck go through with it," she answered as if the question was stupid. Maybe it was but it still begged the question of…

"You knew? You knew I was working with HYDRA?!"

"Yes," she paused, glancing over her shoulder. "Well, no. I didn't. Clint did actually."

Ward looked shakily in the archer's direction. He expected to see anger or something akin to disapproval on his face. But instead he saw the same smirk the brat wore when he knew something that someone else didn't know. Normally Ward hated when that expression was aimed anywhere near him. But not today. Not today when it meant that Clint clearly knew and wasn't about to hold a secret that had been growing for eleven years against him.

"How did you know?"

"I knew Garrett was," Clint shrugged. "Rumlow thinks he's so slick. But he's really not. He all but told me that HYDRA was still alive and well the very first day I started rolling with his meatheads. But then he let it slip that Garrett was too. It didn't take long to figure that you were probably HYDRA too."

"How'd you know that I would give up the names?"

"I didn't," Clint shrugged again. "But I really hoped that you would pick the right side." Ward snorted. The brat tried to warn him close to two months ago.

" _Something is coming. I can feel it. And I just… I feel like there is going to be a line drawn in the sand at some point. I want you to think about what side you're going to be on when that line is drawn. Pick your loyalty."_

"I guess I did," Ward said, smiling a little. He slung an arm over Skye's shoulders, keeping her close.

"About damn time," Lopez hissed. "Want to cut that a little closer, next time? I think this idiot was actually about to do it."

"I wasn't," Puck protested but again, Ward knew the man he called a mentor. That was such a lie. The idiot really was going to let Thor hit him with Asgardian lightning in the name of helping clear Rogers and Romanoff. "Thanks anyway, Ward."

"No problem," Ward nodded his head towards the grinning teenagers. "But I mean it's just my word against theirs. How do we prove any of it?"

"Leave that to us," Stark Jr. replied grinning a scarily identical way to his father beside him. "Between us, we'll have every secret HYDRA has tried to hide since the day Hitler first came to power in less than four hours."

"He means that too," Skye admitted reluctantly. "The little gremlin is scary good at hacking. But to be fair it's because his brain got an Extremis upgrade."

"Wait, is there anyone in this room right now that's not an actual superhuman?" Ward asked, with a hint of his old humor returning.

"Uh," Skye chewed on her bottom lip. "Phil, May, you and Fitzsimmons are still on #teamnormal. Oh, and Bobbi, Trip and Sharon but they're not in the room right now."

"Wait, what about Barton?"

"Another Extremis victim," Clint replied. He tilted his head to the side and there was an eerie glow there. The light faded and Clint looked slightly apprehensive. As if he thought this was going to be the thing that made Ward stop talking to him. As if.

"I knew there was something going on with your eyes the other day," Ward said, jabbing a finger in the archer's direction. "Phil said I was making it up but I knew. I totally called it."

"Yes, you did," Phil patted him on the head as he passed by. "Good job!"

Ward frowned even as Skye snickered, moving away from him to join the Starks already working hard at their respective computers. Clint caught his gaze and rolled his eyes when Phil ruffled his hair in the same way.

"He always like this?"

"You get used to it," Clint admitted.

"Eh, it's not so bad," Ward shrugged. "At least he never made you shoot a dog."

Clint turned his head. "I feel like I want to ask you about that but I'm not. Because then I'm going to want to shoot Garrett more than I already do. Which is a lot."

"Join the club."

The two men sat in silence for a few moments before Clint started fidgeting. It wasn't anything overly obnoxious or even annoying, just a couple of shifts in his seat, quiet sighs and a nervous twitch in his left pointer figure. Ward couldn't help but grin at the familiar movements. He had seen them plenty of times when they were first coming up as SHIELD agents and Clint pulled some insanely stupid stunt and was getting called to grass about it.

"What's wrong?"

"Did.. Steve and Nat didn't kill Fury… did they?"

Ward shook his head softly. "No, because he wasn't HYDRA. He was a good man and still loyal to SHIELD. It was looking into something that triggered Pierce. He had him killed."

"Oh, so it was HYDRA?"

"Yeah," Ward replied, around a quiet sigh. "But Clint, you have to know that I had nothing to do with that. Taking out Fury was never…."

"I know…. Dude, I don't…. you don't have to…." Clint trailed off, looking down at his hands. Finally, he glanced up and Ward's heart hurt at the sincerity reflected in Clint's odd colored eyes. "I don't blame you for this. I know what Fury meant to both of us."

"He let those two bring us in. You know I'm pretty sure Garrett and Coulson had a bet going. Bring in the two worst possible candidates and try and make them into SHIELD agents. Well a HYDRA in SHIELD agent in my case. But still a SHIELD agent. And Fury saw no problem with this." Ward snorted. "The man was either a genius or a masochist."

"We didn't turn out so bad."

"A Stockholm syndrome suffering Nazi supporter and a bratty archer hopped up on extreme super soldier juice?"

Clint elbowed him with a small grin on his face. "No, the man who is going to help take down HYDRA once and for all and a freaking Avenger. Dude, we're awesome. Fury would actually be pretty proud of us, you know?"

Ward laughed a little, leaning further into Clint's side. Yeah, looking at where they were currently, Fury would be proud. He had been trying to push them together for years. But Ward's own ego and wounded pride made him push away the archer and Garrett helped keep the feud going. But now… now, Ward got it. He understood. Clint was more than just his teammate. Clint was his family and he was going to do everything in his power to protect that. Yeah, the old man would've been proud. Ward was even sadder that he didn't live long enough to see this day.

* * *

Blaine said four hours. It actually only took one. Still in that hour, most of the group cleared out. Melinda took Fitz and Simmons back to the Bus. Bobbi also left with strict instructions that she be notified should anyone be in the mood to overthrow Nazis or fry teenagers. Sharon threatened to shoot her first. Trip also left saying that Garrett would probably get suspicious if he was gone too long. So that left only Sharon, Ward, the Avengers, Phil, Skye and the rest of the teenage crew to hear Blaine's triumphant shout of "eureka" three hours ahead of schedule. He was met with blank stares from most of them, but especially Sam, Brittany and Santana. Jerks.

"Congratulations, you've achieved a new level of uncool," Sam said, shaking his head. "And to think I let you kiss me."

"You guys I just unlocked all the secrets of Nazi death cult from the 30s. I think that requires a little more enthusiasm," he griped.

"Yay!" Santana and Puck replied in a monotone. He glared at them. Donnie made jazz hands. When Blaine took over the world, he would totally spare Donnie. The rest of those traitors were dead.

"They're just kidding and you know it. We're all proud of you, sweetheart," Pepper assured him. "Now tell us what you found."

"No one appreciates quality service these days," Blaine muttered mournfully. He ignored the exaggerated eye rolls and groans and instead focused his attention on the information in front of him. He projected the files he was reading onto the big screen. "So as you can see here, this a list of every single known or even potential recruit for HYDRA that is or ever will be."

Tony murmured thoughtfully even as he leaned forward, scanning names. "Ha, not shocking at all that Hammer is on the list of rejected candidates. How lame do you have to be to not even be good enough for the Nazi death cult?"

"I'm glad you have your priorities in order," Clint mused with the first real smile any of them had seen him give since the news that Fury was dead. Blaine knew it had a lot to do with Ward choosing the side against the Dark HYDRA infected side of SHIELD. Blaine could totally understand that. Clint was a little lost after Fury was killed and Natasha was in the wind. It made sense that he wanted to keep all the family he had together.

"My priorities are always in order, Feathers," Tony retorted, sticking his tongue out at the archer. He was about to make a comment when his eyes narrowed in on something. "Blaine, open that file. The one titled Project Insight."

"Project Insight… why does that sound familiar?" Skye murmured.

"Because it was an initiative from SHIELD," Phil said, his brow furrowed. "It was a response to a more global threat in the wake of the Battle of New York. It involves three heavily armed Hellacarriers in motion at all time in order to provide constant supervision and to neutralize threats before they become actual threats."

"Yeah, well, maybe that's what it was meant to be before HYDRA got involved," Santana countered, shaking her head also reading through the information presented. "But it seems that Secretary Pierce has changed the parameters of the mission. This has several very specific targets. About 219,000 specific targets. And there are some familiar names too."

"Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Maria Hill," Puck rattled off. "Blaine Stark."

"Ha! I'm a threat to HYDRA!"

"Babe, did you really need the computer to tell you that?" Sam asked, patience dripping from his voice. "You are currently hacking into HYDRA's files. I think it's safe to say that you're a threat to HYDRA."

"Why can't you let me have this?"

"I love you even though you don't make any sense and are a ridiculous human being," Sam muttered, pressing a kiss against Blaine's cheek.

He grinned at his boyfriend before shooing him back to where the others were going through the Project Insight information. He heard Phil telling them that the launch for Project Insight was happening later that afternoon. Someone else made a response but Blaine lost track of the conversation. Instead, he found himself drawn to a folder simply titled "the asset". All of the others files in the HYDRA database he uncovered had fancy titles but this was just a boring tilted folder. He almost didn't open it. He knew he should be more focused on Project Insight. They had to take it down before it launched and killed over 200,000 people, himself and his father included. Bruce stood a chance at survival. But he didn't want to run that risk. He was about to move away from that folder but once again his attention was drawn. Finally, he just gave into the urge to click it and immediately found even more reasons to hate HYDRA.

"Guys," he called out, shakily. All at once, everyone was focused on him. "I have some more information that I need you to see."

"More important that Project Insight?"

"Yeah, it's called Project Winter Soldier."

Clint tensed, his eyes flickering with Extremis before settling. "The Winter Soldier? That guy is a ghost. If it wasn't for the fact that he shot Nat, no one would even think he actually existed. And you're telling me that he works for HYDRA."

"More than that," Ward said, quietly. "He's the one that actually killed Fury."

Clint's jaw twitched. "He shot my girl and killed my other dad. I officially hate this guy."

"Plot that revenge a little later," Blaine said. "That wasn't what I wanted to tell you." He pointed to the screen where he projected the information currently displayed on his tablet. "He's been the assassin for HYDRA for the past seventy years."

"That's impossible," Ward protested. "The guy is in his mid-twenties at most."

"You've seen him?"

"Only all geared up," Ward shrugged. "They don't trust me with the Asset. I don't have high enough ranking within HYDRA to actually work with the Asset. But I've seen him from a distance once. The guy is a coldblooded killer."

"He has a body count stretching back longer than some of us have been alive," Tony said, his voice a mix between disgusted and awed. And then he was just pale and surprised. "Including… my parents. HYDRA had my parents murdered." Pepper put an arm around him. Blaine watched his father lean into her embrace briefly before pushing himself past it. "I think I might have to officially hate this guy too."

"You might want to hold off on that. I think I see the part that Blaine was originally trying to show us," Bruce pointed out. "It would appear that the Asset isn't a willing assassin for hire. They use a combination of trigger words and brainwashing to keep him loyal. However, the programming is breaking down after seventy years of continuous use. He's been displaying 'personality defects' and the times between resets don't appear to be lasting as long."

"Brainwashing, resets," Santana repeated, with a disgusted face. "This is a human being. They're talking about mind raping a man and using him as a weapon for over seventy years. That's horrible."

"That HYDRA and it gets worse," Bruce continued. "Since the current Asset is breaking down, they're working on a new one. This one is a newly acquired 'specimen'. He's younger and they're hopeful that it will allow the brain to take more naturally to the program."

"How old is he?"

"He's sixteen."

Puck let out a choked gasp. "It's Jake."

"We don't know that for sure."

"Right, so the sixteen year old offspring of Captain freaking America got kidnapped by HYDRA and they're totally talking about an entirely different sixteen year old boy. That makes total sense," Puck snapped.

"Noah," Santana murmured. Puck raked a hand through his hair.

"Fine, what about the original Asset. What do we know about him?"

"Nothing. There's no name in here. He's just known as the Winter Soldier or the Asset. The earliest information we have here is that he was originally a prisoner of war that HYDRA took a special interest in. He was given…."

Blaine narrowed his eyes to see what part was causing Bruce to stop. And then he saw it. The damn bane of all of their existence. Despite how awesome Steve was and of course how much Blaine loved Steve's great grandchildren, he was really starting to believe that the world would've been a better place if Abraham Erskine had just kept his stupid formula to himself.

"He was given an early version of the super soldier serum. Not quite as effective as Steve's but still potent," Sharon continued. "I think this is the evidence we need here. They don't even need to give Jake the formula. He's already producing it or he's likely to be producing it at the very least."

"We have to find them," Puck said, already climbing to his feet. "Blaine, send me the information you have on where they store the Asset… this guy in between times."

"You're not going alone," Santana argued. Puck smirked.

"Wouldn't dream of it. But I do think that we need to be at the launch too. If I know my grandfather and Natasha, they're most likely going to end up there. And they don't know that we know about HYDRA. We need to cut them off before they do something stupid. But I need…."

"You need to get Jake," Santana nodded, with a smile.

"Don't worry," Clint said, draping an arm around Puck. "I'm going with him."

"I wasn't worrying before and now I am. Very much."

"Ha, ha," Clint retorted. "We'll get in there and grab Jake and take care of this Winter Soldier character."

"Clint, I know you're mad at him but you have to remember, he's as much a victim in this as the people he's been told to kill," Bruce said gently. Clint's face shuttered but he managed a small nod. He then looked to Tony. Blaine found himself also watching his father carefully.

"Bruce is right," Tony finally said, letting out a slow breath. "You can't blame the gun. Blame the thing that pulled the trigger. We're going to rescue Jake and whoever this guy is. We're going to stop HYDRA for good. And then we're talking a damn vacation somewhere that no one will find us."

Clint laughed dryly. "Well, you heard the man. Let's suit up! It's time to save the day. And then find a remote island in the middle of nowhere because that's about the only way we'll ever have a day off."

"That's that optimistic spirit I love to hear!"

* * *

It didn't even surprise Clint at this point that not only was Maria involved in the Project Insight mission but she was already aware of them coming to help. Well, most of the team anyway. He and Puck were on a special mission of their own. With Project Insight scheduled to launch at any given moment, it wasn't a surprise that the facility housing both members of Project Winter Soldier was the least heavily guarded. It also wasn't a surprise that it took Clint and Puck less than ten minutes to take out most of the thugs HYDRA hired to guard the facility. All that was left was the science nerds, who apparently didn't get the memo that today was supposed to be like a national holiday for them. Because they were busy working. And by working, Clint meant that they were busy strapping a protesting and struggling teen with a strong resemblance to Puck into a chair.

"Jake!"

"Puck," Clint made a futile attempt at grabbing the younger man but he was quick. Seems even mutated super soldier formula wasn't a match against the old fashioned version mixed with alien genes. Damn this family really was insane.

"Who the hell are you?" one of the scientists asked, looking up at Puck's sudden appearance.

"Someone who very much appreciate you stepping away from the kid," Puck replied, calmly. Needless to say that was not an effective deterrent as one of the men recognized Puck as the "other" great grandson and suggested grabbing him too. Clint almost groaned. These people were ridiculous.

Clint shifted and sat down to watch as Puck singlehandedly made his way through each and every one of the HYDRA science goons until there was only one left. None of them were dead, though they might wish they were in the end. No Puck spared all their lives and Clint knew he was ready to spare the final one. But the man clearly thought he had some kind of advantage. He thought that Puck's mercy made him weak. So he threatened Jake. And Puck put a bullet between his eyes. A clean shot. A good death.

Silence settled over the lab as the four scientist left alive were deeply unconscious and Jake was pretty occupied gawking at the dead moron on his lap. Puck stood still with his gun still aimed straight ahead. Clint could make out the faint tremor in his hand. He was across the room, gently easing the gun from stiff fingers and then politely looking away as Puck emptied the contents of his stomach a short distance away.

"You okay?" Clint asked, rubbing his mentee's back gently. Puck nodded slowly though Clint could see that he was still shaken. He didn't blame the kid. The first kill was always the toughest. But Puck made the right choice and he would tell him that every day until it finally sunk in. But for now…. "Want to meet your little brother?"

Puck's eyes widened as if he had forgotten the entire reason they were there in the first place. And given the paleness of his skin and the twitchy movements of his hands, Clint knew the kid was dangerously close to going into shock and that he probably did forget why they were there. He would keep an eye on him. First things first though….

"You guys are here to help, right?" Jake asked, his voice small yet defiant.

"Yeah we are, kid. You're safe now," Clint assured him even as he and Puck started working their way through Jake's bindings.

"I am but he's not," Jake insisted, shaking his hand as Clint freed it. "You have to stop him. They're going to make him kill his friend. He doesn't want to do it."

"Wait, who's going to kill who?" Puck asked, brow furrowing but some color returning to his cheeks.

"Bucky. He said his name was Bucky and remember who he was. But then they wiped him. And he doesn't remember anymore. He won't know but he doesn't want to do it. Please, he's my friend," Jake's voice was basically a hushed whisper by the end. Clint felt his heart clench at the sound.

"Wait, did you say Bucky?" Puck murmured. Jake looked up and nodded. "Blue eyes? Brown hair? Really awesome shot?"

"Yeah to all of those and also… Noah?"

"Yeah, kid. I'm your brother. And I think that the Winter Soldier might be Bucky, our great grandfather's best friend."

Jake's eyes widen even as Clint's did because… he did not see that one coming. But he also didn't doubt Puck. It fit. Bucky Barnes fell from a train and was presumed dead over seventy years ago. The same amount of time that the Winter Soldier had been active. The Winter Soldier was also given a bastardized version of the super soldier serum. Bucky Barnes had been the subject of experiments when he and the rest of the 107th were captured. It fit and holy crap Clint still couldn't believe the man he idolized growing up was possibly the Winter freaking Soldier. They always said you shouldn't meet your idols.

"Bucky Barnes? Like the best friend of Captain America, Bucky Barnes?" Jake repeated slowly. "Wait, Captain America is our great grandfather?"

"Yeah, it's a long story," Puck grinned, shuffling over to help take some of his brother's staggering weight. "Do you know where they sent him?"

"To some launch," Jake answered, sounding slightly dazed. "He's supposed to finish his mission while he's there. They wiped him extra this time to make sure that he stuck to the mission only. I think he might actually kill him."

"Nah, Grandpa is way too stubborn to die," Puck replied, nonsensically. "But how about we get over there and stop them before it comes to that. What do you think? You think you can walk?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Jake answered, though he was leaning heavily on Puck. Clint couldn't even imagine what the kid had been through during his time with HYDRA. He couldn't imagine it being anything good if the damn Winter Soldier was his only friend.

Still if the Winter Soldier was actually Barnes, Clint really was going to have to stop the secret loathing he held for the assassin. He was definitely was more of a victim in this than probably all of his targets combined. The man had been used for seventy years. And given the high amount of jerks and assholes in HYDRA, Clint could only imagine the horrors he endured and atrocities he was forced to perform. No, Clint couldn't find it in him to be angry anymore. The Winter Soldier may have killed Fury but he knew the man didn't do it because he wanted to. No, they were going to save him too. They were going to save him and add him to the growing roster of damaged heroes.

HYDRA was done as of today. They weren't going to take anymore family members away. They took Bucky from Steve once but fate gave him another chance. Steve deserved this and Clint was going to make damn sure they got his friend back. And then he was going to make Pierce pay for this. He might not have been the one that pulled Bucky into this life but Clint knew he was the one pulling the strings now. He was the one that ordered Fury's death and he was the one that was going to pay.

He felt his eyes glow as he followed Jake and Puck back to their waiting ride. Oh yeah, this was going to be fun.


	18. Don't Let Me Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which new friends join the gang, Steve and Nat learn about teamwork and HYDRA goes down.

The incident that would likely be called the Battle at Project Insight was in full swing by the time Clint and the brothers Puckerman arrived on the scene. And Clint meant that in a literal sense as there was currently a man swinging from what appeared to be a set of damaged metal wings. The wings were pinned against the wreckage of a small jet. The harness that attached the wings to the man also appeared damaged as they came across the man struggling to release himself from the wings. The trio came to a stop beneath him. Jake had his head tilted to the side as if he was trying to make sense of this and failing entirely. Puck was wearing a look that could only be described as amused confused resignation. Clint knew he was wearing a similar expression judging by the annoyance on the man's face.

"A little help?" their new friend snapped, his tone showing how done he was with this whole situation and possibly even life itself. His expression was of a man who was in way over his head but determined to see this thing through to the bitter end. Clint would not be surprised if the man knew Steve. He tended to inspire that kind of stupid loyal behavior in people who really should know better but forget in the face of freedom. It usually ended with that person hanging upside down on broken wings or some other equally ridiculous situation.

"How did you even get up there?" Jake asked even as Puck moved away to ninja his way up debris to help free the increasingly more grumpy man.

"How do you think I got up here? I flew!"

"Clearly not that well," Jake muttered, earning a dark glare from said flying man and a snicker from his brother. Clint bit his lip in an attempt to seem like an adult in this situation.

"I was flying perfectly well until an even angrier version of the Terminator pulled me out of the sky and threw me into a jet!"

Jake sobered quickly at the slight reference to his self-proclaimed protector. He frowned slightly. "Bucky is here?"

The man squinted his eyes. "You know him too? That's the name Steve used when we were back on the bridge."

"So you do know Steve?" Clint asked, ignoring the question. "Where is he? Is he okay? Is Natasha with him? Is she okay?"

"You definitely must be Clint," the man said with a knowing look in his eye. "But to answer your question, Natasha was with us but she's working on another part of the scary SHIELD woman's plan." Clint let that slide in his almost numbing relief that Natasha was okay. He made a mental note though to tease Maria about her ability to strike fear into the heart of literally everyone later. "As for Steve, he's up there facing off against the same guy that did this to me. And despite my best efforts, I think he's still trying to save him rather than kill him."

"Of course he is. Because freedom!" Puck grumbled. He motioned for Jake to move forward even as he cut through the straps on the wings. Jake was there to help break the man's descent to the ground. Once he was standing on his own two feet, he grinned.

"Thanks. I'm Sam, by the way. Sam Wilson."

"Oh, just what we needed, another Sam," Clint smirked. "You already know I'm Clint. This here is Jake and the one that freed you is Noah or as we all call him Puck."

"Wait, Noah?" Sam said, surprise on his face. "You the same Noah that Cap was gushing over? His great grandkid?"

"Figures, Steve is on the run from HYDRA and SHIELD and he still finds the time to brag about you," Clint laughed, enjoying the red flush spreading across Puck's cheeks as he dropped down next to his brother. The kid was really going to have to get used to family talking him up judging by the slight hero worship in his little brother's eyes. Puck caught his gaze and scowled. Clint smiled brightly.

"Natasha has a few sappy things to say about you," Sam continued. Puck snickered earning an elbow to the stomach. Clint arched an eyebrow in his direction.

"Anyway, we should probably get up there and stop them from killing each other," Puck said, rolling his eyes at Clint.

"Yeah, but how are we supposed to do that?" Jake asked, brow furrowing slightly. He really did look like a darker and somehow even more adorable Puck. They were so keeping this one around. Puck arched an eyebrow. Clint blew him a kiss before tilting his head towards a pair of the neglected Quinjets behind them.

"Ah," Puck raised his eyebrows and laughed. "Yeah, I think that might just work. "You come up with some of the best ideas. I don't know why everyone says that you're a menace."

"You're not seriously considering hotwiring a jet…. Are you?" Sam asked, hesitantly.

"Dude, I've only known them for about twenty minutes and even I know that the answer to that is yes. Yes, they are," Jake nodded, sagely. "I'm starting to think I might have been safer with the HYDRA scientists."

"I think I might have to agree. Steve said to be concerned if I ever encountered you two together and without either Natasha or someone named Santana in tow. Natasha is off handling Pierce and Santana isn't here… is she?"

"No, she is not," Clint and Puck replied in unison. "This is going to be fun!"

* * *

Steve was definitely not having fun. Not that he thought he would be having fun in a death match against his hopefully, not definitely brainwashed best friend turned assassin who was also not as dead as Steve had previously believed. He often dreamed about this moment. That he would wake up to a world where he had Bucky back. And like most good dreams, reality was not stacking up. In his dreams, he and Bucky reunited and everything was perfect. Reality found him struggling to fight back with a bullet in his side. Reality sucked. A lot. Seriously, he couldn't imagine how this scene could get any worse.

Of course, because life was just in the habit of kicking him where it hurts, the scene went even further downhill as all of a sudden a jet crashed into the side of the helicarrier the two former best friends were fighting on. Steve barely had time to register the smoking wreckage when two people were crawling out from said smoking wreckage. One face he knew only from photographs but the other one was very familiar and at the moment very unwelcome.

"Noah, what are you doing here?" he asked through gritted teeth. His kid slid in between him and Bucky as gracefully as he did everything in life. Puck grinned brightly as if they were just hanging out at home and not in the middle of a fight to the death with hundreds of thousands of lives on the line. He's clearly been hanging out with Clint for too long.

"Hey, Grandpa. I want you to meet someone. Gramps, this is Jake. Jake this is our Gramps. I mean technically he's our great grandfather but that's a lot of words."

"Hi," Jake waved a little before turning his attention to Bucky. Steve felt his heart stutter when his youngest grandson walked slowly towards the seething assassin who was watching the teen warily. "It's okay. You know me, right?"

"Yaakov," Bucky muttered in a voice that seemed rusty and somehow adorably fond at the same time. Despite the oddness of his tone, the name earned a bright smile from Jake. Puck turned around and kept his eyes trained on his little brother's back. Steve watched as the hardened look softened somewhat in Bucky's eyes. The same eyes that were sliding from Jake's face to glance briefly at Puck before gliding over to Steve and then back to Jake.

"Do you know who that is?" Jake asked next.

"He is… my mission?"

"No," Jake said firmly. He paused. "Okay, well technically he is your mission but no. He's so much more than that. He's your friend. Your best friend. You know him, remember?"

Bucky's brow furrowed as he seemed to struggle with this information. His grip on his weapon loosened somewhat and Jake stepped forward without hesitation to take it from him. He stuck the knife in his pocket while handing the gun over to his brother. Puck seemed to hesitate between holding onto it and holstering it. Eventually, he tossed it to the side and crossed his arms over his chest. He was clearly trusting Jake's read on this situation.

"I don't… I know him?"

"Yeah," Jake murmured encouragingly. "This is Steve Rogers. He's your friend. And you do know him. He's not your mission anymore."

Jake moved so that he was now standing beside Bucky. All the previous fight and fire in his friend was gone. Instead he looked confused and so sad that Steve hurt for him. Jake caught his look and nodded. His smile tilting somewhat.

"HYRDA… they did something to his mind. They keep doing something to his mind. They turned him into a weapon and they freeze him when they don't need him. But before they stick him in the freeze, they wipe him. They've been doing this for over seventy years. His short term memories are a lot better than the long term. It's easier for him to recall more recent things than further back in his memory. Except for you. Somehow he saw you and he remembered something from seventy years. He remembered you."

"Bucky?" Steve asked, hesitantly. His breath caught at blue eyes met his shakily. He knew those eyes. Any small remaining doubt he had about the man in front of him was gone. This really was Bucky. His smart ass, sarcastic, loyal, beautiful best friend. He was here. He was real. He was alive and he was here. And he was so broken. But he was here. "Oh, god, Buck."

"Stevie?" Bucky gasped before curling into himself. A low whine sounding from his throat. Steve wanted nothing more than to wrap the smaller man into his embrace but he didn't know what the boundaries were here. He didn't know how any of this worked. How did one go about comforting a man that was forced to not only forget who he was but also to commit horrible atrocities in the name of the ones who stripped you of your identity?

"Gramps, what were we supposed to be doing?" Puck's voice snapped him out of his spiraling thoughts. Steve gave him a confused look. "You need to focus on this. Let me finish whatever it is that you were supposed to be doing here, okay?" Steve nodded jerkily and handed the chip over to Puck.

"This is going to crash the helicarrier," Steve said, pressing the chip into Puck's palm, squeezing his hand briefly before pointing to the interface he was meant to be using. "We're going to need to get out of here quickly after you do that."

"Don't worry so much. I got that part covered," Puck smirked before running off to complete Steve's original mission.

Ordinarily, Steve would've felt bad about giving the kid that much responsibility but he was distracted. Every part of him was focused on Bucky standing before him. He was trembling faintly. Jake had one arm slung around his shoulders but it was obvious that Bucky wasn't registering anything happening around him in that moment. Steve didn't know what HYDRA did to his friend but he knew it was nothing good. Natasha told him what the Winter Soldier was capable of… what he's done. None of that sounds like the Bucky he knew but yet Bucky was standing in front of him. It seemed that HYDRA stripped away everything he was and made him into something else. Steve saw firsthand what that could do to a person. Clint was still recovering from just over a week of being under Loki's control. He didn't know what over seventy years could do to a person. What it did to Bucky.

"Okay, mission complete. Time to go!"

The helicarrier rocked in a twisted echo of Puck's announcement. Steve felt a little a sliver of hope when he saw Bucky reach out automatically to steady Jake. The console behind them sparked and exploded. And yet, despite the fact that they were plummeting towards the imminent doom, Steve noticed that Puck was still grinning like a lunatic not unlike a certain archer they all knew and loved. He definitely needed to restrict the time they spent together… then again, he remembered what Clint was like in the early days of the Avengers and even what his grandson was like before he knew about SHIELD and Steve. It was Clint who got through to him back when he was scared and lost. It seemed so long ago sometimes when it really wasn't more than a few months. Clearly they were helping each other even if their idea of helping caused gray hairs in literally everyone else around them.

"Is this part of your plan?" Steve yelled over the usual sounds that followed a member of the Avengers: explosions, things collapsing and the danger of imminent death.

Puck scoffed even as he picked up Steve's shield which was lying discarded on the ground, forgotten in the aftermath of his and Bucky's fight. "Of course not, Gramps," he said edging closer to the side of the ship. The side of the ship that was now covered by a hovering jet. A jet being piloted by….

"Clint!" Steve was never happier to see the archer before in his life.

"Rogers, party of four?"

"Hell yeah!" Puck replied, jumping onto the jet. "This is part of my plan."

Steve pulled Puck to him briefly and pressed a quick kiss against his forehead. "You are one hell of a kid, Noah." He smiled despite the utter chaos around them as Puck blushed violently, ducking back onto the jet to make some comment to a snickering Clint. He managed to turn around just in time to help Jake on board.

That just let him and Bucky. He held his hand out to his best friend but the gesture went unreturned. The Winter Soldier took a step back, seemingly oblivious to the destruction around them. His eyes still had that haunted, faint panicked look in them.

"Bucky?"

"I… can't," Bucky said so quietly that it took every bit of his super hearing to catch it. "They'll come for me. I failed. I failed my mission."

"No, you didn't," Jake protested, moving to take a step towards him but held back by Puck's arm. Steve nodded in both their directions before inching forward slightly.

"He's right, Buck. You didn't fail. You can come with us. It's okay. They're never getting their hands on you again," Steve swore. "Trust me. Remember. We're together…" he trailed off, feeling slightly hopeful as Bucky finally stopped shuffling backwards and was instead looked at the outstretched hand with a cautious look.

"Until the end of the line," Bucky finished in a soft whisper. "Steve… I…."

"I know," Steve cut him off. "It doesn't matter. I'm here. It's okay. Just come with us."

"You can trust him," Jake spoke up again. Steve was happy to note that he was even further in the plane and firmly behind Puck. "They're the good guys."

Bucky nodded slowly and shuffled forward with his flesh hand outstretched. Steve felt the warmth of his skin for a brief moment before the screech of wrenching metal signaled the full and complete collapse of the hellicarrier. The deck cracked and the ground underneath Bucky's feet shifted and broke taking him with it. Steve had only a second to think 'not again' before he was diving after him.

Steve's hand clamped down around Bucky's wrist and held on tightly. He didn't know if his chances at surviving this fall were any better than Bucky's but he did know that at least they were together. As he was preparing to brace himself for a no doubt painful impact with the water, he felt a hand wrap around his ankle with a tight grip. Their descent halted abruptly allowing Steve to get a better hold on Bucky. He craned his neck slightly to see Puck dangling dangerously over the side of the jet, holding on as best he could to Steve's foot. Steve could see the strain on his face as he struggled to pull all three of them back to safety. And then a final explosion from the dying ship sent a shockwave that rocked the jet.

Steve heard Puck yell as he was thrown forward causing Steve and Bucky to slip further down. But once again, their fall was stopped as Jake jumped into the action, pulling on his brother's waist and helping to stabilize them.

"Seriously?! And everyone thinks I'm the crazy one!" Clint exclaimed as he finally managed to fly them far enough away from the flaming wreckage to help out with the human chain still dangling precariously in the air. "Damn heavy ass super soldiers and aliens."

"Aliens?! There are aliens?!" Jake yelled incredulously

"Hey, focus up! These two aren't any easier to hold onto just because I'm part alien!"

Steve rolled his eyes even as felt himself finally moving in the direction he wanted to be in. Within a few moments, they were all lying sprawling on the floor of the jet, panting with relief and feeling the last dredges of adrenaline pass through their systems. Steve finally sat up and looked around at his companions. Puck was already back on his feet, heading towards the front to fly them back to base. Jake was patiently listening to Clint's overdramatic whining about his apparently wrenched shoulder that was already starting to heal. The archer sure did love to forget that he was technically just as super powered as the rest of them now that he too had his own version of the super solider serum. Hypocrite. Finally, Steve's gaze roamed from the hypocritical archer to Bucky. He was staring back at Steve with a look of confused amazement evident in his eyes. Steve started to ask him if he was okay when the soldier… exploded.

"Steve Rogers, you're a complete and total idiot!" Bucky roared. "What the hell were you thinking? Oh, wait. Let me guess, you weren't thinking! Because there's no way you could actually think that diving after me was a good idea! You're lucky your grandkids got their brains from someone else because you're absolute moron! I swear I leave you alone for five minutes and you're off doing something stupid! Always!"

A stunned silence fell over the aircraft as they all stared in disbelief at the seething assassin. Puck was blinking from where he stopped midway to the pilot seat with a grin tugging on his lips. Jake was also similarly stunned. Clint was looking torn between amusement and regret that he hadn't whipped a camera out to catch the full rant for Tony and Bruce later. As for Steve… he was... content. Because this was normal. This was what Bucky did. He raged. He yelled. But most importantly he was there. He was there to follow Steve into whatever reckless idea he had that day. And he got him back. He got his Bucky back.

"Bucky," he whispered, feeling tears welling in his eyes.

"I… don't know," Bucky murmured, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. "I'm sorry. I don't know where that came from."

"Doesn't matter," Steve said, shaking his head. "You're back. You're here. I don't care about the rest of it. We'll worry about it later, okay?"

"Um, okay," Bucky agreed as Steve tugged him into his arms. It took a few moments but Bucky let out a soft sigh and settled against Steve, being careful not to press too much weight on the gunshot wound still on Steve's side.

Steve left himself relax. For right now, everything was okay. It wasn't perfect but it was as close to that as he was probably going to get in that moment. His kids were okay. He could hear Clint and Puck bickering in the front about who even knew what. Jake could be heard every now and then in response to his brother. And against all odds, he had Bucky in his arms. He was here and he knew him. He knew it was going to get so much worse before it got better with his best friend but he would be there every step of the way. He actually got his Bucky back and like hell he was going to let anything take him away again.

"Look, Puck. It's a happy ending."

"Yay!"

"Um, things are incredibly still messed up. I don't really get how this is a happy ending."

"Oh, young Rogers-Puckerman offspring, you have much to learn."

Steve snorted and buried his face on Bucky's head. His family was so weird.

* * *

Natasha was literally seconds away from exposing every bit of information regarding HYDRA and SHIELD onto the internet when the doors to their conference room opened and Tony Stark and Bruce Banner strolled through like they had not a care in the world. The oddness of the scene was marked by confused silence from the angry World Security Council members and the stillness from Pierce and Fury. Her gaze flickered from her boss who was still aiming a gun at Pierce to her two friends standing in the doorway also gaping at Fury. Though their surprise seemed wholly reserved for his being alive and not because he was minutes away from shooting the Secretary dead.

"Okay, so that's messed up," Bruce muttered, shaking his head in Fury's direction. "You're not dead."

"Unless Nick Fury really is dead and you're just an LMD," Tony suggested with a bright gleam in his eye. Fury glared. Tony sighed. "Yeah, no LMD could fake that level of annoyed disgust. It's really him. I knew you wouldn't die that easily."

"What are you guys doing here? How did you even find out about this?" Natasha asked, finally finding her voice again.

"First off, hi. Nice to see you too. Second, rude! Like we weren't going to stick our noses in where they didn't belong. And third, we're here to stop you from doing what you're about to do. You don't have to."

"Yes we do. If you know why I'm here then you already know that HYDRA is down deep in SHIELD. We need to flush them out. This is the only way to find out who is who is."

"Uh, really? Because we already did. Well, Blaine and JARVIS did. But since I made them, I get some of the credit. Like twelve percent. Anyway, Secretary Douche, we have names and crimes for every single HYDRA agent that was or ever will be."

"That's bullshit," Pierce spat, seemingly oblivious to the angry director still training a gun on him or the personification of rage glaring in his direction. "There's no way you have that kind of information. You're bluffing."

"Except," Ward said, strolling through the door with Sharon, Bobbi and Trip following behind him. "They're not really."

Pierce's smug looked turned furious as he stared the young agent down. "I always told Garrett you were weak. He should've let you rot in that hellhole."

"Maybe he should've," Ward shrugged. "But a certain bratty idiot obsessed with arrows once told me there was going to be a time when I needed to pick a side. So I did. I picked the winning side and it feels good."

Any response Pierce would've made was cut off as Trip and Sharon proudly, and with a little more glee than should really be allowed, arrested the soon to be former Secretary of Defense. Bobbi slapped the handcuffs on him even as Trip and Sharon took turns reading him his rights. They each wore looks of satisfaction and Natasha didn't blame them. Pierce almost ruined the legacy of Peggy and the Howling Commandos. The thing they each worked towards continuing. No, she wouldn't let either one of them feel bad about that one. Pierce deserved this and so much more.

"Nick?" Ward's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked over to see the slightly older agent staring in surprise at an actually sheepish looking Fury. "You're alive. But they said… Pierce said you were…."

"They were wrong," Fury assured him. "Still here and still kicking. And I see you and the other brat are finally getting along. All it took was me dying."

Ward paled. "I'm so…I never meant for this…."

"Hey," Fury interrupted him, striding across the room to stand in front of him. He clapped a hand on Ward's shoulder. "It's going to be okay, Grant. I get it. You came through when we needed you. Without you flipping on them, I don't know what we would've done. You did good, kid. Just like I always knew you could."

Ward nodded shakily. Natasha grinned as Fury pulled him into an embrace. Fury loved to pretend he was gruff, all bite and no bark. But she knew the truth. Put him in front of any of the many strays he's collected over the years and he's melting like the teddy bear they all knew he was deep down inside. It was a testament to the man's leadership skills that so few people knew that all it took was watery puppy eyes and a pout to crack that hard exterior. Natasha snickered even as Fury opened his eye to glare at her from over Ward's shoulder. She winked in his direction before excusing herself to watch Pierce's utter and complete humiliation. The bastard had it coming. And then some.

She followed Trip and Sharon as they paraded Pierce out to where the rest of the HYDRA operatives were being rounded up by the various other members of Phil's SHIELD team with Thor, Santana and Donnie helping them out. Everyone was accounted for except for Steve, Clint and Puck. But she had a feeling that they were most likely together. Santana didn't seem particularly stressed as she shoved what remained of Rumlow's crew down onto the tarmac with a vicious smile on her face. And if Santana wasn't stressing about Puck, then that meant he was in as good of condition as they could probably expect from someone that was directly related to Steve Rogers and willingly picked a human disaster as a mentor.

Natasha let out a quiet sigh of relief. It was over. They did it. They actually managed to do it. Of course, a lot less messy than how they were planning. And really, they probably should've just involved the rest of the team from the beginning but the time for hindsight and regrets would come later. Right now, there was only one face she needed to see and then she could finally start trying to relax for the first time in almost a week. And as if on cue, a jet came to stuttering landing on the ground. The doors opened and five people spilled out.

"That was a horrible landing!" Clint exclaimed, waving his hand at one of the two limping figures behind him. "Then again, it was still better than your brother's first attempt at flying. At least you didn't completely crash the plane."

"I didn't crash!" Puck protested loudly. "The plane just kind of was on fire at the end."

"Is that not the definition of a crash?" the younger teen he was supporting asked with the genuine innocence of someone who didn't spend much time around a group of raving lunatics. But since it was obvious that this was one Jake Puckerman, Natasha supposed he would learn to adapt to the insanity pretty quickly.

"We're brothers, you're supposed to be on my side!"

Jake nodded slowly before fixing Clint with an amused look. "It wasn't a crash."

"Rogers, your kids are menaces!" Clint shouted over his shoulder.

Steve emerged from the plane, even slower than the other three with one hand pressed against his sluggishly bleeding side. The other was draped over the shoulders of a ghost. The Winter Soldier…. though he looked a lot less murder oriented and a lot more like a very adorable puppy. His arm was wrapped around Steve's waist but Natasha couldn't tell who was supporting who in this equation. It looked to be about even.

"The Prodigal Son returns!" Tony teased as he and Bruce joined the others on the tarmac. Natasha looked warily between Tony and Bucky. Steve also stopped, tension evident in his muscles. He seemed reluctant to move past the safety of the jet. Natasha had no doubt in her mind that Steve would double back and take off if he even remotely thought any of them were a threat to Bucky. But he wouldn't go without his great-grandsons who were telling him something that she couldn't quite make out.

"It's cool. Everything is okay, Natasha," Bruce assured her. "We know all about the Winter Soldier. He's safe."

"You know about…."

"My parents," Tony sighed. "Yeah, I know."

"Did you know he's also apparently Bucky Barnes?"

Tony raised an eyebrow and glanced back over at the jet. "Now that I didn't know. Good thing we called off your boyfriend then. He was kind of gung-ho about killing the guy that shot his, and I quote, 'girl' and his 'second dad'."

Natasha rolled her eyes. Clint was entirely ridiculous… and also entirely unaware that Nick wasn't actually dead. Oh no. Ward had guilt hanging over his head preventing him from feeling betrayed by Nick's fake death. But Clint was a contrary little human who while being incredibly emotionally stunted was able to multitask such complex emotions as guilt, betrayal, and anger. She definitely needed to intercept that one before it…

 _"Longing. Rust. Furnace. Daybreak. Seventeen."_ She stopped short as Pierce's voice rang out over the tarmac. _"Benign. Nine. Homecoming. One. Freight Car."_

The words were random and spoken in Russian. They didn't make any sense to her and those not affiliated with HYDRA. But she got an idea that they weren't good when Rumlow smirked despite kneeling on the ground in front of an eighteen-year girl with his hands behind his back. She doubly regretted not letting Fury shoot Pierce back in the room when all HYDRA affiliates turned to look at the previously docile Winter Soldier. Natasha tensed, reaching for her gun as they all waited for something to happen.

Bucky slowly lifted his head from his shoes that were previously holding his attention. Wide blue eyes looked around, seemingly surprised to see everyone staring at him. He tilted his head to the side looking first to Steve and then to Clint when Steve nodded in his direction. Her partner smiled softly and sent him a message reassuring him through sign language. Bucky glanced around, his eyes landing on Pierce, prompting Steve to pull him impossibly closer. He then lowered his head once more, his expression hidden behind the curtain of brown hair hanging around his face.

"What the hell?" Pierce muttered. "Why didn't it work?"

Puck sauntered over to stand beside his partner. "The arrogance of the rich, Nazi and insane. You honestly thought that we weren't counting on one of you assholes to try and trigger him again? Noise canceling earbuds, my dude."

"Should I even ask why you just happened to have noise canceling earbuds on you?" Santana asked, fond exasperation coloring her tone.

"San, we live with the Science Disasters and Thor," Puck snorted. "You're insane if you don't just carry around noise canceling earbuds."

"You might have a valid point," Santana mused. "Hey, anyone else here thinking about maybe gagging the dude that has the murder codes to the Winter Soldier handy?"

"Allow me," Sharon replied, pulling a piece of cloth from her back pocket. She shoved the fabric in their former bosses' mouth. "And stay quiet, will you?" she glanced over her shoulder. "You okay, little cousin?"

Puck scoffed, dragging Jake along with him. "I'll have you know that I'm perfectly fine. And you can no longer call me little cousin, Share. Because this is your little cousin. Sharon and Trip meet Jake. Jake, meet Sharon and Trip, our cousins."

"Oh my god, he really does look like you! He's a little you!" Sharon squealed as if she was not holding a gun on Shield's Secretary of Defense. "He's so adorable."

"Sharon, maybe let's give him a couple of days to settle in before we start royally embarrassing him?" Trip suggested. "Why don't we clean up here a bit and then you can get your girly feelings out of the way?"

"Call me girly one more time," Sharon threatened. "But you're right. Fine. We'll see you back at the Tower?"

"Yeah, we'll be there, Share," Puck assured her. She kissed his cheek quickly before leading Pierce away. Trip paused only briefly to pat both of his younger cousins on the shoulder, moving on to help bring in the rounded up HYDRA agents.

Soon it was just the Avengers and their junior team members left behind. Which is why Natasha felt no shame in running straight towards Clint, smiling when he met her in the middle. His arms were wrapped around her so tightly, she could barely move. But that was fine with her. Because she had no intentions of moving very far away from him anytime soon anyway.

"Hey, beautiful," he murmured in her ear.

"Hey, sexy," she pulled away from him slightly, gazing up at his face. "I missed you."

"Missed you more," he replied, pressing a soft kiss on her lips. "How about we avoid any crazy kidnapping or on the run moments for a bit, okay?"

"Okay," she promised, laughing as he pulled her closer again. "But, hey. Clint, there's someone I want you to see."

"Oh, is it the other Sam? We cut him down from some wreckage before the whole jet thing. He said he was going to go find Maria. I'm pretty sure he likes her. Either that or he gets off on being told what to do. Which isn't wrong per say but….."

Natasha placed a finger on his lips cutting off his admittedly adorable and hilarious rambling. As much as she could listen to him ramble about the various inner workings of SHIELD agents and their budding relationships (wouldn't be the first time), she knew that it was a sign that he had reached his limits. She was hesitant to push him further but it was unavoidable. She shifted her hand so that she was cupping his cheek instead. Her thumb stroked the soft skin of his cheek lightly. She read the question in his eyes.

"I love you," she whispered. His brow furrowed before he tensed in her arms. She lifted up slightly to wrap her arms around his neck in a mock hug before moving away entirely and leaving him face to face with the not dead Nick Fury.

"You…" he stopped, taking a quiet, shaky breath. "Nat, please tell me that's a LMD."

"Are you sure you and Tony aren't actually related?" Fury mused. "It's me, kid. Don't tell me that I have to go through this with you too. I thought you were smarter than Grant."

Clint shook his head, taking a step away from him. "No. I can't… this… no!"

"Clint?"

"You bastards seriously couldn't even make it a whole year without making me think that one of you was dead?! Was a year too much to ask for? Seriously? Do you and Phil have some kind of schedule set up or something?"

"On a bright side, I only made you wait a few weeks to find out that I wasn't," Fury joked in an obvious attempt to lighten the mood that failed miserably. Natasha chewed on her lip watching as Clint's face crumpled. She had only seen the man cry once in the entire time they've known each other. And it was when he thought that Phil was gone and he was responsible. "Clint? Kid, talk to me. Yell, scream, do something."

But Clint remained silent. Natasha could feel him trembling. She heard the short, sharp breaths he was taking. She wanted to offer comfort but she knew this was out of her hands. It would be her time later. But now, this was all Fury's show. That didn't stop the rest of the team from wanting to help too. She shook her head as Thor and Tony both took a step forward. This was between the archer and one of the men that practically adopted a broken teenager and put him back together. None of them looked happy about it but they trusted her to know what was best for Clint.

"Clint?" Fury tried again.

"I," Clint started, swallowing harshly. "I…."

Nick sighed, deciding at that moment that his precious (and imaginary) reputation could stand to take another hit. There was no way he was going to leave one of his kids in distress. He crossed the small distance between them, ignoring the invisible boundaries Clint had imposed and pulled the archer into his arms. For the second time in less than an hour, Nick Fury was holding one of his sobbing agents. Seriously? How did anyone buy into that tough agent act? Still, there was no other course of action to take when faced with a crying Clint Barton. Natasha has killed people for a lot less than her partner crying, but she was liable to level small countries to make him stop. And she knew it was the same for Nick.

She also knew that the man was very much aware that Clint's breakdown was for far more than just his return from the dead. This was an emotional overload that was months in the making. She kissed him on the side of the head and offered a weak smile to Fury. He nodded and motioned for her to go. She smiled a little brighter. Like she said, it would be her turn to comfort her boyfriend later. Right now, Clint only needed Fury. She turned away to help Puck who was struggling with the infamous Rogers' stubbornness in duplicate. Fortunately, they were up against someone equally as obstinate.

"For the last time, you're both getting checked out!" Puck snarled. "You got shot, Grandpa. Super soldier or not, you're not bulletproof. You're getting checked out. And Jake, we don't know what those jerks were doing to you. So you're going to let our wonderful Uncle Bruce check you out. And if you're good and don't try to run away, we'll let you join our Disney movie marathon."

"Which movie are you up to?"

" _Mulan_."

"Deal," Jake agreed, hopping up on the waiting gurney. Steve glared in betrayal. Natasha arched an eyebrow in his direction until he finally conceded and let himself be led away by the impatient medical team.

It said a lot about the team and their various reputations for being medic phobic that the trained professionals didn't bother to try and check Steve out on their own. Instead, they frog-marched the still grumpy and pouting Steve over to Bruce. The not medically trained doctor was sitting next to Bucky, who was a lot less reluctant to be looked over. Well, he was once Steve promised that Bruce could be trusted. Bruce didn't tear his eyes away from the exam still in progress next to him as he waved Steve towards the spot next to his best friend.

Natasha stifled a laugh as Steve continued to struggle against his body. But as he looked around to see Puck chatting with Santana while also keeping an eye on his brother and Bucky right beside him, he started to wilt. Bucky must have noticed as his flesh hand shifted to rest on Steve's knee. He didn't seem at all surprised when the massive bulk that was Steve came to rest on his shoulder. Instead, he rested his head against Steve's and sighed quietly.

Satisfied that they would be okay for now, Natasha finally made her way to where the rest of her team were waiting. She didn't even protest as both Tony and Thor pulled her into a hug before scolding her for not including them from the beginning. She didn't protest because they were right. It wasn't just her and Clint anymore. They had friends. They had a family. It was a bit surreal for her sometimes but it was comforting.

"I'm sorry," Natasha murmured.

Tony snorted. "It's fine. I think this team thing is a new concept for all of us. But just know that we all have your back next time."

"Will do," Natasha promised, surprised that she really did mean it.

Relief and exhaustion reigned supreme and Natasha was all too ready to head back to the Tower she called home and relax for the first time since Puck called them to tell them that he had a little brother. And hell, she was overdue a break even before that. She was now completely mind blown that she was still moving. Although that largely had something to do with Tony's arm that was wrapped around her shoulders. She smiled, leaning further into the embrace. Yeah, she had a team now. She had backup. She didn't need to be strong all the time.

"Natasha?" She lifted her head to see Phil and Melinda approaching. Her former handler arched an eyebrow. She watched his gaze drift over the emptying scene. She also watched as his gaze turned more frantic and a bit desperate as he failed to find the one person he was looking for. "Clint?"

"Relax, Agent," Tony answered, sensing Natasha's exhaustion. "He's okay. Not a scratch on him. Trust me, JARVIS checked. He's okay. He's just with his other dad."

"His other… Nick is alive?" Phil asked, a variety of emotions flickering over his face. And then one settled. "Nick is alive. That mother…."

He trailed off as he stomped in the direction of Clint and Fury. Natasha took pride in the fact that she wasn't the only one who stopped everything to watch the confrontation. It said a lot about the relationship between Nick and Phil that the director would even allow Phil to lay into him like that. But Natasha knew them both. Still, she couldn't help but giggle as Melinda came in and gently guided the still emotional Clint away from the rapidly declining scene.

"Aw, look it really is a happy ending!" Puck cheered from somewhere behind them.

"I still don't get how people crying and yelling makes this a happy ending," Jake countered because he still didn't know.

"You get used to it."

"I don't think I will."

"You're part Rogers," Santana argued. "You definitely will."

"Facts," Puck added.

Natasha snickered, shaking her head. She leaned back to look up at Tony. "Hey, think we could go home now?"

"Wanna crash the kids' Disney marathon?" he suggested even as he started moving them. "I figure we could order some pizzas and those ridiculous bean bags they seem to pull out whenever they need them."

"That actually sounds amazingly like what I need right now," Natasha agreed. She caught Santana's gaze as they walked towards the car Tony drove there. The younger woman winked and smirked, rolling her eyes as Puck said something no doubt ridiculous.

Natasha let out a deep breath. It was all over. True, this was only the beginning. SHIELD was going to need a complete overhaul. Sure they know who was HYDRA but that didn't mean that things wouldn't have to change. Then there was the whole Bucky/Winter Soldier thing. Not to mention the younger Puckerman brother thing. Oh, and the kids were still aliens. So yeah, things were by no means resolved but they were steady. And she was looking forward to a little downtime. Of course, that's what got them into this mess in the first place.

"Next time, we're just going split them up. Clearly, togetherness leads to problems."

"Sure, let's blame it all on the kids," Thor snorted, strolling ahead of Natasha and Tony.

"I hate him," they muttered in unison.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I'm officially up to date with the cross-posting. I'm working on Chapter 19 as we speak and it will be up soon.


	19. Normal Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which things are actually normal for once, love is love, Steve Rogers should not be allowed in public high schools and what the hell is Brittany? Puck has ideas and Brittany has answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> had a lot of intentions with this chapter but unfortunately I'm seeing Infinity Wars tonight and I have a feeling that my muse kittens will be running rampant with that. So I wanted to at least give you all one chapter of this before my brain is taken over by IW. I hope you all enjoy!

**Normal Things**

"Jake! Bucky? Breakfast is ready!"

Puck cracked his eyes open for a moment, blinking against the sunlight streaming through his window. Not for the first time, he needed a moment to remember where he was. The bed wasn't the one he had in his shared quarters with Donnie, nor was it his bed at the Tower. It also wasn't his childhood bedroom. So for a moment, his breath quickened. And then, just like it had been for the past few mornings, there was a quick squeeze on his wrist and it all came back. He twisted his hand so that he was holding hands with the girl currently hovering by the edge of his bed. He cracked his eyes open to see her watching him with a soft look in her eye.

"Hey," Santana grinned slightly. "You with me?"

"Yeah," he whispered, scooting over. "What time is it?"

"Six," Santana replied, rolling her eyes and climbing onto the space on the bed he left for her. She propped her elbow up on her crossed legs and rested her head on her hand tiredly. "Your granddad is taking this domestic thing to amazingly annoying new heights."

"It's all for Bucky and Jake," Puck murmured, sitting up finally and raking a hand through his hair. It was getting longer than ever before. He was even considering Santana's suggestion to pull it back into a small ponytail. He wasn't as opposed to the concept as he pretended. But he did draw the line at a man bun. That just wasn't happening. No one looked good in a man bun. Well, no one except Bucky. Even Puck had to grudgingly admit Bucky pulled the look off nicely. Then again Bucky could pull off almost every look nicely.

"Obsessing about Bucky in a man bun again?" Santana teased. He rolled his eyes at her, eliciting another giggle. Despite his attempts at appearing grumpy, he couldn't help but smile at Santana's infectious cheer. Per the usual with them, her good mood was rubbing off on him. It was impossible to not be happy when faced with a giggling and silly Santana Lopez. Before their slightly enforced but completely necessary break, it was a rare sight to behold. But in the past few weeks, it was a common thing.

He stretched and listened to the sounds of the house coming to life around them. He could hear Jake stumbling around in the room next to his, struggling to get dressed and downstairs. He could just make out Bucky's quiet steps as he ghosted along the hallways following Jake's path. He heard Sam approach the quiet former assassin and then they were walking in sync with one another. A gentle guiding prompt from Sam had Bucky speaking up more and more every day, and not just to Jake or Steve. Darcy and Brittany were already downstairs and he could just make out their gentle teasing jabs at an apparently hastily dressed Jake. Puck smiled, letting the calmness of the moment waft over him.

"We're okay."

"Yeah, we are," Santana reassured him, putting a hand over his and squeezing lightly. "We're all alive and in one piece. It's been a whole two months and nothing life threatening or insane has happened. I think we just set a new record."

"Watch a giant robot invasion happen this afternoon," Puck snorted.

"Oh god, I think Clint would explode from happiness," Santana retorted with an exasperated shake of her head.

"He called yesterday. You'd think he would learn by now that complaining about being bored is just a clear invitation for chaos and insanity."

"Nope. He clearly hasn't learned a damn thing from the whole Extremis thing. But on a bright side, you got a little brother from all of Clint's whines about everything being calm and not life threatening."

"Technically I had the little brother before that. I just learned about him after having to save him from the mortal danger Clint created by whining."

"Semantics," Santana murmured, resting her head on his shoulder. He leaned his head against hers and sighed contentedly.

Ordinarily he probably would be right along with Clint protesting the unusual calm that had settled over the Avengers and all affiliated personnel. But that was before he almost died, well rather after he died, came back and then immediately almost died again. That was also before he found out he had a little brother that had been kidnapped and tortured. Not to mention the fact that his only recently discovered great grandfather's previously believed to be dead best friend forever was actually alive and brain washed into becoming a violently murderous assassin for the organization he died fighting against. The organization that had been alive and well in SHIELD this whole time. It was safe to say everyone had PTSD from this experience and very far from okay. So yeah, this break was something he needed to ground himself before falling into the next big crisis. And it was working. He hadn't felt this good in a while. And it was only going to get better.

"What time did the others say they were getting here?"

"Blaine said sometime tomorrow afternoon but then reminded us that his father has no chill or concept of timing. So it could be anytime within the next three or four hours." Puck snorted. Then he tilted his head to the side. His faint smirk melting gently into a true smile. Santana rolled her eyes. "They're here, aren't they?"

"Yup. Just walked in. Blaine and Sam are trying to sneak up the stairs. They're trying to surprise us. Clint and Nat are here too. Or at least Clint is. I can hear him bitching about whatever Gramps made for breakfast. Gramps just called him a food snob. Ugh and Darcy and Cooper are making up for lost time in the living room. I will never understand that relationship."

"Gross. At least it's not the kitchen this time."

They both gave full body shudders as they remembered the totally uncalled for and gross goodbye Cooper and Darcy felt the need to engage in when they thought everyone was sleeping. They forgot that the Tower was occupied by two full supersoldiers and two half-bred supersoldiers and all of them were related in some way to Darcy. That made for a very awkward plane ride back to Lima.

The door to the room flew open but neither of the room's occupants flinched much to the disappointment of Blaine and Sam and the amusement of Brittany who followed them up the stairs. She chose that opportunity to slip past them and climb onto the bed beside Santana. Puck smiled as Santana reached her hand out to tangle around Brittany's. He was happy for all of five seconds before Blaine and Sam sat down and were entangling themselves in a disgustingly adorable position as well. He grunted.

"Of course, I'm the lone hetero amongst all this adorable cute sappiness."

"Like you should talk," Santana retorted with a smirk. "You know I'm right next door right? I hear you on the phone with Rachel all night. I think you two have the market cornered on adorable sappiness."

"You two do have the advantage," Blaine agreed, leaning back against Sam's chest. The blonde wrapped his arms around his boyfriend happily. "I swear I got several cavities the last time you two were together."

"I went into a diabetic coma from which I've only just emerged," Sam deadpanned.

"You two are going to have hot Jewish super powered babies," Brittany chimed in. Puck rolled his eyes but couldn't force his smile away no matter how much he tried.

"You're starting to sound like my grandfather. He keeps asking me when I plan to pop the question. Never mind that we've been dating for like a minute and I haven't actually seen her in a month," Puck muttered, rolling his eyes. "For someone who just found out he has grandkids much less great grandkids, he's in a really big rush to add some more."

"I'm pretty sure he was ready to marry Jake off last week," Santana giggled. "His face when he found out that Kitty was already dating Artie and therefore unable to date Jake was priceless."

"Yes, thank you for those pictures," Blaine grinned. "They were hilarious. Clint blew it up and put it on the mantle in the Tower."

"We don't have a mantle in the Tower."

"Oh, yeah. By the way, Tony built a mantle in the Tower," Sam drawled. "I believe he said it was the best way to display his brand new invention: the Avengers Wall of Shame."

Puck laughed. He could only imagine how well that was going to go over with the rest of the team. Then again, the whole team was composed of a bunch of overgrown sarcastic children masquerading as functional adults. So it would probably be a thing for a while to come. And in a very sad and telling way, Puck was actually missing home now. For the first time since they arrived at the former Anderson home, he missed the Tower. He missed the team. He even missed SHIELD in a way.

"Is it bad that I miss home even though I know all of us together is a recipe for disaster?" Santana asked, voicing his thoughts in that way that only she could.

"Nope," Blaine assured her. "Malibu was great but not nearly as right as the Tower."

"But honestly even that was boring without you all there," Sam added, resting his chin on Blaine's shoulder. "Let's not do the whole separation thing again, okay? I'm really not a fan."

"Agreed," they all replied together. Puck grinned as he felt settled for the first time in a very long time. And it had everything to do with the fact that they were all back together again.

Though he had experienced calm he didn't know he could find in Lima during the past month, it hadn't felt quite as good as it did right now with these four around him. Sometimes the depth of the connection between the five of them scared him. Before the Invasion in the New York, Puck felt lost and aimless. But in that room watching Iron Man fly into a wormhole and the utter devastation that crossed Blaine's face when it happened, it was like something clicked. He didn't know why then but he knew that he had to comfort Blaine. He knew that he had to help him hold it together. And he did. As did Sam, Santana and Brittany. It was in that moment that the connection was born. Somehow or another, they were all drawn to each other. It was something that none of them could've predicted. Well, none of them except for…

"Britt, you knew about all this, didn't you? About all of us meeting and this becoming a thing. You knew."

Brittany grinned. "Yeah. I dreamed about you all when I was a little girl."

"Why do I have a feeling that was a lot longer than just a few years ago?" Puck asked with a teasing smirk. Brittany closed her eyes and hummed thoughtfully. He took that as his cue to go on. "You ready to tell us?"

"I think you know most of it by now," she answered, opening her eyes.

"Wait, Puck?! The hell?! You know what Brittany is?! And you never told me?! I thought we were best friends!"

Puck rolled his eyes at Blaine's mock outrage. "One, we are best friends, moron. Two, I didn't tell you because you were literally standing next to me the day I figured it out. Three, why aren't you yelling at Thor? He knew before any of us."

"You're Asgardian?" Sam murmured. Brittany tilted her head to the side with a slight nod and a playful smirk. "Okay that explains the day we caught you and Thor talking in Old Norse. But there's something else. You're more than just Asgardian. It's that thing you do with your eyes."

"Oh, you mean this?" Brittany closed her eyes again. But this time when she opened them they could see galaxies reflected in her eyes. Puck knew he wasn't the only one staring at the blonde. He had seen a hint of this before but it seemed that Brittany was ready to finally come clean. She let the literal stars in her eyes fade back to her normal blue and grinned.

"Thor can't do that," Blaine said. "Wait can he? Has he been lying to us all this time?!"

"Maybe he can. I feel like Thor holds back a lot. I mean he only does the lightning thing when it comes to his hammer. He's not the God of Hammers," Santana replied absently. Puck snorted, snapping her back to attention. "So what else are you besides Asgardian?"

"I'm only partially Asgardian," Brittany admitted. "My mother is half human and half Asgardian. Her mother was a Valkyrie actually. She fell in love with a mortal and had my mother. Then a war happened on Asgard and my grandmother died. My mother grew up without really knowing her Asgardian side. My grandfather didn't even tell her until it became clear she wasn't aging like everyone else."

"That sucks."

"It wasn't so bad. Eventually my mother found out about a young Asgardian who would visit mortal villages and tell them stories of Asgard. She started visiting when he did and struck up a friendship. That's how she learned of where she came from. She also learned that he was the youngest of the Asgardian princes. He really wasn't such a bad guy in the beginning."

"Wait, Loki?! Your mother met Loki before he became…. Loki?"

Brittany nodded. "Yeah, she used to tell me stories about him. He… changed. After the Asgardians stopped visiting Midgard, they changed. He changed. But anyway. A little over sixty years ago, my mother met another alien on Earth. They fell in love… or had a one night stand to hear my mother tell the story, and I was born."

"So you're part Asgardian, part human and half what?"

Brittany took a deep breath and untangled her hand from Santana. She held her hands in front of her and closed her eyes, looking deep in thought. Puck was about to ask what she thought was happening when a spark started. It was a dark purple color. When she opened her eyes, the earlier stars were back.

"Celestial. I'm part Celestial," Brittany answered, keeping the spark centered between her palms. Her eyes were on the glowing orb that seemed to be growing at Brittany's silent behest. Under her watch it slowly formed into a perfect circle and the more Puck concentrated on it, the more it looked like a…

"Planet? Did you just make a mini planet?!"

"Yup," Brittany grinned brightly. She let the new planet spin from her palm floating up onto the ceiling. It moved towards the overhead light in the room where it started a slow orbit. "Once when I was younger I created an entire galaxy."

"Younger like….?"

"When I was fourteen and realizing that I wasn't like the other kids," she replied, shrugging. "I could see things that they couldn't and I knew things they didn't know. I isolated myself for so long because I didn't see the point. I saw where being different got my mother. She grew up raising an equally different child alone after everyone she loved around her died. It wasn't until I had a dream about you all that I realized maybe I could have a different path."

"So wait. You told us that you dreamed about us for fifty years. So if you had that dream at fourteen that means you're like pushing seventy?" Santana asked, narrowing her eyes. Brittany looked conflicted for a moment but Santana shrugged, pressing a kiss to her girlfriend's cheek. "Looks like I got a cougar of my own."

The boys snorted even as a pleased flushed smile spread across Brittany's face. Puck smiled at her as well. "You know we don't care how old you are. We love you anyway."

"As long as you didn't pull an Edward and start attending high school over and over just because you could," Blaine said with a smile of his own. "I don't know if we could forgive that."

"Yeah, that would be a no," Brittany laughed. "This was my first and only time attending high school. Once was enough for me."

"Well then I'm good," Blaine shrugged. Sam rolled his eyes, silently wondering why anyone was even asking him. And that was that. Well, except one last thing. "Have you ever met your father? You said he was a celestial?" Brittany nodded.

"Celestials are ancient beings. Super ancient. Like at the dawn of time ancient. My father is one of them. He's a planet and an asshole."

"I'm sorry, what? The asshole part is very important and will be addressed but I'm sorry did you just say that your dad is an actual planet?!"

"He's a living planet. And before you ask how I was born, he found a form that would be appealing to the indigenous species of various planets and he went about spreading his seed. I have so many brothers and sisters. Mostly older but a few younger. I could feel them all when I was younger. But one by one I felt them wink out of existence. And then one day, a Ravager came for me. They're like space pirates. They usually have a code but I guess the money was too good for this guy. He wanted to take me to my father and I knew if I went with him…. I would never come back. So my mother begged. Made him promise to tell my father that I was dead. And he agreed. I think he knew deep down what was happening to the others. So he said he would lie and tell Ego that I died. I then found the tiny connection I had to him and I cut it off entirely."

"Whoa," Puck finally whispered, breaking the silence that settled over them when Brittany was done. Santana wrapped her arms around her girlfriend and let Brittany rest her head on her shoulder. Blaine reached forward to hold her hand. "Are all of your siblings gone?"

"I don't know. I cut the connection between me and Ego so he would never know. That connection let me feel my siblings. I'll never know if there were any born after that. And that was over thirty years ago."

"And he hasn't bothered you in all that time?"

"No, to him, I'm probably dead. Or not worth bothering with at any rate. I have no idea why he wanted his children collected like that but I know it's probably not for anything good. But he's never sent anyone after me again. And I've tried not to let it bother me."

"Then we won't either," Puck said, shrugging with one shoulder. "Besides we have bigger things to worry about." Brittany flashed him a grateful look even as Santana perked up behind her.

"Yeah, like how much of a scene do you think graduation is going to be this year. You'd think that they wouldn't be as hyped since all of us graduated but apparently they're still just as pumped as if Britt, Puck and I were graduating again."

"Probably has something to do with Blaine and Sam getting honorary McKinley diplomas. It's mostly because the school wants to have you both as distinguished alumni," Puck snickered. Sam rolled his eyes and flicked his best friend on the leg. "It's cute that you guys are going to prom too."

"Whatever, if we're actually doing this sham graduation thing, then we're doing it right. Not like you three and the other gleeks weren't going to show up too."

"Of course we were," Santana replied, brushing imaginary lint off her pajama leg. "To imply otherwise is utter nonsense. We even have bets going on how long it's going to take the Brothers Furt to make a scene because both of their exes have moved onto better people."

"Yeah, they both pulled a major upgrade," Brittany agreed. "All the big money is on Finn throwing a tantrum first. But my money is on Kurt being the one to really escalate things. He's been on the warpath since you two made it Facebook official last month."

"Last month was literally the only time we had to actually sit down and think about something as trivial as updating our relationship status on social media," Blaine said, rolling his eyes. "It's actually kind of refreshing to be back in a time when the only thing I have to dread is running into my hateful ex-boyfriend."

"Yeah, it's been pretty quiet and normal. I'll miss it when it's gone."

"How much longer do you think we'll have?"

"We're lucky if we get to the end of this chapter."

"The fourth wall bit never gets old."

* * *

Will Schuester was aware that he has made certain… mistakes when it came to the new directions and the various teens that made up the glee club. He definitely was in the habit of playing favorites and pretending to be oblivious to things around him. But since he became aware of his previous limitations, he also sought to make up for those mistakes by recreating the past with a whole new club of kids. Maybe that wasn't his intention at first but it was kind of obvious that certain roles were repeating themselves. And so Will was determined to not screw it up the second time around. He was going to get it right this time and in the process make it up to some of the kids he messed up the first time around, especially Puck.

His brother was practically a clone of him down to personality, looks and talent. He was a talented performer but he was also a walking time bomb of emotions that needed someone to step in. Will wanted to be that person, more than just because he failed Puck, but also mostly because he failed Puck. It was a stupid idea, he's aware, but he truly felt that if he could somehow save Jake, then it would make it all up to Puck. But like most of his more brilliant ideas, it was ultimately an unnecessary move.

He learned this one afternoon, about a week before prom. He heard about Jake's fight during lunch. The whole school was talking about it. He did some leg work and found out that the kid was fighting because some students were making fun of the cafeteria worker, who also happened to be Marley's mother. Since starting school, Will noticed that Jake had a habit of following after Marley with his eyes. It was cute and a little reminiscent of the Finn-Rachel-Puck triangle of the past. The kid really did strive to be just like his brother. At any rate, Will heard about the fight and was ready to go to Figgins office and speak up on behalf of Jake who was just trying to help. But by the time he got there it seems he was already beaten to the punch.

Will stopped short upon entering the office area. Jake was standing against a wall with an exasperated expression on his face that was perfectly matched by his older brother beside him. If there was ever any doubt that they were related, it was ruled out looking at them side by side. Even their body language was similar as they glanced down at the girl standing next to them. Santana was blatantly listening and giggling at whatever was happening behind the closed door while another older looking man was looking torn between amusement and also exasperation. Will briefly remembered the man being introduced as a friend of the family when Puck and Jake's mother brought the teen back to school about two months ago. It was obvious that while they were trying to get him back into a normal routine something had happened to him while he was missing. The school had several people they were meant to call if something happened but aside from the occasional fight nothing happened with him that warranted a phone call.

"Bucky, do something!" Jake hissed at the older man after a long series of giggles from Santana. Jake face palmed at whatever had Santana in hysterics. "Why is he like this? Noah, you never told me he was like this!"

"He's Captain America," Puck countered. "His entire career is based off his 'fight me' attitude. Hell, that's how he became Captain America in the first place. He never learned to back down from a fight."

"And that right there is why I'm not entirely convinced you two aren't actually his kids," the older man retorted. All three paused and then rolled their eyes together. The man sighed heavily. "I'm going to go get him."

"Oh really? Now you want to go get him? He's been in there for two hours! All I wanted was to go home and see if I can get Clint to bake cookies for me."

"You mean you want to get home while that bruise is still there to try and guilt trip him into baking for you," Santana corrected. "Trust me, you don't need all that. He's weak when it comes to Puckerman puppy dog eyes. And you have the puppy face to back it up."

"Thanks, San!"

"You're welcome."

All conversations grinded to a halt as the door to the office opened up and a very defeated looking Figgins stepped out followed closely by a man that Will realized was in fact Steve 'Captain America' Rogers. What the hell was he doing there?

"Mr. Puckerman, Jake… I would like to offer you an apology. I'm sorry that you had to fight to stand up for one of my staff members. Consider that detention removed. And I would also like to thank you for your strong sense of morals that allowed you to stand up against such a harsh injustice."

Jake blinked before throwing a look at Steve standing beside Bucky. The blonde shrugged but a glance at a less than amused Bucky had him at least attempting to look sheepish. It was ruined by the smug tilt to his lips that Will recognized from Puck all the time. Curious. He snapped out of his thoughts when he realized Jake was talking again.

"It's fine, Principal Figgins. Just… maybe have a word with the students about bullying. It's a problem."

"I know," Figgins winced, also looking at Steve. "But I've recently been given several anti-bullying techniques to employ in the school."

Bucky narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, no. Run those by a professional adult and maybe even a couple of therapists before implementing them."

"I'm almost eighty percent sure none of them are safe to use on kids," Puck agreed. "You know they have this little thing known as the Geneva Convention!" Steve frowned, tilting his head in thought. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

"Oh, why don't we ask Mr. Schue what he thinks," Santana said, sounding far too innocent. "You know since he likes to eavesdrop on other people's conversations."

All eyes flickered to where Will was standing just outside the main office suite. He didn't think he would be intimidated by the stares of two teenage boys and a comic book idol but here they were. Glaring at him with the same fire in their eyes. He was distracted by the low growl coming from Bucky. He took a step forward but Jake placed a hand on his shoulder and the fight eased out of his body somewhat. Though Will did notice that his left hand kept clenching under the glove he was wearing. Will swallowed. This guy was scary.

"Uh, hello."

Puck and Santana snorted while Jake groaned, throwing his head back. Steve was eyeing him curiously, his gaze flickering wildly between Will and Puck. Bucky continued to look torn between fight or kill mode. This wasn't at all how Will thought was going to go.

"So you're Will Schuester? The glee teacher?" Steve said cutting off Will's next words. He crossed his arms over his chest, eyes sizing Will up and clearly finding him lacking. "For some reason I thought you'd be taller."

"Stevie, you realize you're a giant now. So not a lot of people are taller than you," Bucky retorted. "Also, stop it! You haven't bitched at enough of the kid's teachers yet?"

"I never got a chance to talk with Mr. Schuester before graduation. I never got to meet the man that ignored how amazing and special my kid is. And not just him, Buck. He did the same thing with Sammy, Britt and Santana. I think he only noticed Blaine because of Kurt. He didn't care about him much though. He didn't care about any of them because they didn't fit into whatever ideal he was building. And now he's trying to make up for his mistakes with my other kid. And I don't think that's right."

Will swallowed. This was definitely not how he saw this going down. He didn't expect to have Captain Freaking America glaring at him and calling out on the admittedly terrible way he ran the glee club. He was aware dammit and he was working on it. And wait… did he just call Jake and Puck his kids?

"Uh… your kids?"

"Mr. Schue meet Captain Steve Rogers, my great grandfather," Puck said with an amused smirk. One that was mirrored on Steve and Jake's faces. "And this is his best friend, Sergeant Bucky Barnes."

"Definitely not a sergeant anymore."

"You were never discharged," Jake retorted, poking the man on his left arm. "That means you maintain military rank."

"I was declared dead!"

"And then we proved that you were actually the world's longest captured POW," Puck followed up quickly. "So you maintain rank and benefits."

"Not that it matters when you got Tony Stark and his make my family happy with money even though they're literally not asking for it ways," Santana muttered.

"I'm sorry," Will said, interrupting what appeared to be typical banter between them. "But you're saying that you're related to Captain America?"

"That's what I just said," Puck murmured. "He's my great grandfather."

"He's the connection you had with the law enforcement agency you were talking about before graduation?"

"That would be the one."

"Wait, let me get this straight," Steve started, eyes narrowed. "You were fine to use our connection to get into the agency but you couldn't use when you were in."

Puck grinned. "I think you'll find that I didn't even use it to get in. Pretty sure Clint just sent in our paperwork and said take them."

"Fury was always going to accept us based on the fact that Clint made friends with actual human beings," Santana snickered. She let out another uncharacteristic giggle at the look of dismay on Steve's face. "Oh lighten up, you big baby. You know that everyone knows Noah is your kid. He doesn't even need to say it. Everyone can tell just by looking at him."

"It's just funny that more people seem surprised that you're related to him and not the other way around ," Bucky chimed in. "The kid's reputation precedes itself. He takes after Peggy that way." Steve's eyes narrowed.

"Why do I take you places again?"

"He's the only other relic from your long forgotten time period?" Jake replied to Steve's question earning a glare from both men. He grinned. "Look, now that Mr. Schue feels sufficiently awful about the way he treated Puck and the others, can we go? Cookies! There are cookies in my future. And I swear if Blaine or Sam eat any of them, best friends or not, I will murder them."

"Now this one is all you," Bucky grinned, slinging an arm around an already protesting Jake. The pair strolled out of the office with Santana and Puck trailing after them, both chattering and bickering in a way that seemed both familiar and strange to Will.

It took him a moment to notice that Steve had not followed his family. He was instead still standing in the office a few feet away from Will. Figgins had long since retreated to his office leaving just the two of them. Will swallowed. While Bucky was clearly the bigger and more obvious threat, there was still something very intimidating about Steve Rogers. Especially since all stories about Captain America showed that the man was fiercely loyal. And if Puck and Jake were his family, Will didn't want to know what he would do for them. Who he would destroy for them.

"Let me just start off by saying I know I've made mistakes with Puck."

"Yes, you have. And you can't take that back," Steve interrupted. "You certainly can't take it back by trying to be there for Jake. That won't undo the damage this school and this town has done to his brother. It's just going to give him a complex. You want to help Jake? Help him because you care about him. And don't worry about Noah. He's fine. He's got a family now and we're there for him, hell for all of them."

Will sighed but couldn't deny the truth. The Noah Puckerman who had sauntered out of the office a few minutes ago was a far cry from the boy who barely graduated. Puck had changed, in more than a few ways. He was more confident and smiled. Not just the smirks but real actual smiles. And he wasn't the only one. Santana had been around a lot more in the past few weeks. She was frequently spotted picking up Jake with Puck after school. He noticed that she also seemed more comfortable in her skin. Happier. And not for the first time, Will felt genuine remorse. He handled things all wrong with the glee club. He played favorites. He turned away the ones that needed the most attention in favor of the ones that didn't. He let them fall by the wayside. But….

"You're right," Will shrugged. "I can't take it back. But I can make a change. I can be there for Jake because of who he is. And not because of who his brother or great grandfather is. And I will. I will be there for Jake because of Jake."

Steve's lips quirked into a small smile. "You're okay, Schuester."

"Thanks, uh, Captain?"

"Steve is fine," he replied with a more genuine expression. "I do actually have to thank you though. Despite it all, you brought them together. I don't think Noah would've made it where he is now without them. And you gave them the space to be who they needed to be. So I should and will thank you for that."

Will shook his head. "It was more them than me. I wasn't… I wasn't the best role model in the beginning. But I'm going to try harder. These kids… they're the best thing I've done with my life. And I'm so proud of them. Of all of them."

Steve opened his mouth to say something more but promptly closed it while rolling his eyes in fond exasperation. The reason for that became clear a second later when Jake and Puck returned. They spared Will a cursory glance before glaring at their great grandfather in unison.

"Are you serious, right now?" Puck snapped. "Let's go! You've threatened enough educators for one day!"

"Cookies!" Jake added, throwing his hands in the air for emphasis.

"Okay, okay," Steve said, laughing at their antics. "We should probably get going. I'm sure Bucky is going to be getting antsy soon."

"We passed antsy about an hour ago. We're slowly approaching the stabbing people for fun stage," Puck shrugged as if this was completely normal.

"Cookies!"

"So glad your priorities are in order, kid."

"Dude, we all know Bucky isn't about to start stabbing teenagers. But if he does feel the urge he has a list of appropriate targets."

Steve and Puck shook their heads in unison before collectively ushering the grinning teen away. Will couldn't help but laugh as well. He knew Puck was an older brother long before anyone even knew about Jake. But Will got the feeling that this was the first time that he was really getting to play the role of older sibling. With Sarah, he was a mix between third parent and punching bag. But with Jake, he got to be a big brother. He really suited the role. It wasn't the only role he suited.

Though he only saw them briefly, Will knew that Puck had a lot in common with Steve. The role of leader was one that fit him too. Damn, he really did screw this one up. He really screwed it up with Puck. But he couldn't change or erase that. All he could do was move forward and try not to repeat the same mistakes with Jake. But he had a feeling that even if he wasn't motivated to do so, there were so many people in the kid's life that would make sure that Will got it right the second time around.

* * *

"And here I thought after living with a god, super soldiers and Brittany that I had seen just about everything," Blaine drawled as he leaned against his father's bedroom door. "But here we are…. Something brand new. You ever seen this before, Coop?"

"No, I have not, little brother," Cooper replied. The same lazy smile Blaine was sporting was evident in his voice. "I never thought I would ever see the day when the Tony Stark got nervous."

Blaine bit his lip as his father finally stopped pacing the length of his bedroom to glare at his sons. Still, it was obvious that his nerves were still affecting him as the look was nowhere near as venomous as it should be. Blaine sighed.

"I don't get why you're so nervous. She's going to say yes. I've run the odds approximately a thousand and three times and there is only a 99.9% chance she will say anything other than yes. Although that chance fluctuates with a few variable factors like location in the house and what color shirt you're wearing. Also…."

Blaine stopped talking as Cooper slapped a hand over his mouth effectively cutting off the Extremis powered word vomit. "What super brain over here is trying to say is that the odds are very small."

"Very!" Blaine added after licking Cooper's palm and forcing his older brother to let him go. Cooper narrowed his eyes even as Blaine dodged his attempts at wiping his spit covered palm on his shirt.

"Seriously, Dad. I'm actually surprised that you two aren't already married. Pepper loves you and us," Cooper added. "And more importantly, she's been by your side for all these years. Mom didn't even stick around but Pep, she has. She has been there for you."

"I know," Tony exhaled. "She… she means everything to me. Next to you two, she's the best thing that ever happened to me. And I know I want to spend the rest of my life with her. But what if she finally realizes that I'm a handful? That I'm too much."

"Then she's clearly been replaced by one of those LMD things that Clint is obsessed with," Blaine retorted. "Pepper is the same woman who walked out of a critical meeting with diplomats from across the country to hold my hand after I got beat up at Homecoming. She's the same woman who had me enrolled in Dalton before I even got discharged."

"She loves us. We love her. You love her. She beyond loves you. It works. Just ask the woman to marry you. Do not do anything crazy or elaborate. Just do it."

"You think it's that easy? You think I should waltz up to her and say, 'hey, Pepper, want to hitch your wagon to my crazy train for the rest of your life?'"

"Yes." The three men froze turning slowly to see Pepper standing behind them. Her eyes were filled with tears but there was a slow smile spreading across her lips. "I mean I was pretty much attached to this crazy train from day one but yes, Tony. I would love to hitch my wagon to your crazy train for the rest of my life."

"Yeah?" Tony asked, laughing slightly. Pepper giggled, nodding her head. "You know I come with a lot of baggage?"

"Anthony Stark, if you're referring to either of your son as baggage, so help me," Pepper trailed off but the threat was felt.

"Not them," Tony laughed but it was the brittle kind that made Blaine feel awful. He hated when his father sounded like that.

"Tony," Pepper started, crossing the room and cupping his face in between her hands. "I know you. I know what you've been through and how it's shaped you into the incredible man I love more than anything."

"How did I get so lucky to have you?"

"You got the same jackpot that gave you Coop and Blaine," Pepper replied, wiping tears away from both their eyes. "Now, I believe I answered your question. So you owe me something, don't you?"

Blaine resisted the urge to face palm as his father looked confused. Instead he cleared his throat and pointed to the front pocket of Tony's hoodie. His father stared blankly in his direction before comprehension dawned on him. He took the simple black box out of his pocket and held it out for Pepper. She opened it with shimmering blue eyes. She nodded even as she held her own hand up, tears sliding down her cheeks as Tony slid the ring onto her finger. It was a perfect fit and Blaine wasn't even surprised.

"I know you said yes already but I want to do this right. Pepper, will you marry me?"

"Yes," Pepper said, nodding and laughing. She threw her arms around his neck and Tony reciprocated by pulling her close. "I love you, Anthony Stark."

"And I love you, Virginia Potts."

Blaine smiled, wiping away his own tears as Cooper slung a heavy and welcoming arm around his shoulders. He leaned into brother watching his father and the woman who was more his mother than his own mother would ever be.

Pepper had been the one he came to. She listened to him stammer through the reasons he thought he was gay and then gave him a hug before taking him out for ice cream. She was the one that walked away from her company to hold his hand while he was in the hospital. While Tony and Cooper were kicking ass and finding out who dared to hurt him, Pepper was the one who was holding him through the nightmares and the flashbacks and making sure he was safe. He never ate as much ice cream as he did that week again. Pepper continued to be there for him in every way. Even now, she still looked at him like he was precious and his mother couldn't bear the sight of him.

He started at the soft touch to his cheek. Pepper's warm eyes met his. "Hey, why are you crying? You okay?"

"Yeah," he assured her. "Just happy. That's all."

"Good because I am so happy too. It's not just your father I'm marrying here. I want you two in my life as well. I'm so excited and proud to be a part of your family."

"You already were, Pep," cooper assured her. "This just makes it official on paper. But you know we both love you."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Blaine agreed before finding himself wrapped in a four person hug. He didn't know how long they were standing there holding each other and sniffling softly but it was probably not as long as Clint was standing there watching them with confusion in his eyes.

"Uh… did someone die?" he asked, looking very uncertain. Tony shook his head and motioned for the archer to enter the room. "Is everything okay?"

Pepper held her hand out for him to see. Clint's eyes widened. "Dude, she said yes! I told you! Also I'm glad you went with that ring. I told you it was the best one."

"Wait… Clint helped you pick a ring? You went to Clint and not us?" Blaine glanced at Cooper. "Me? You didn't come to me?!"

Tony snorted, ruffling Blaine's hair. "Calm down, junior. You helped out with this too. Besides, you're stealing Best Man duties from him. I figured helping me with the ring was the least he could do."

"True story," Clint murmured.

"Wait, you want us to be your best man?"

"Nope," Pepper said, pulling Blaine into her arms. "This one is mine. You get the older one. But I'm claiming this one. Oh and Natasha!"

"Fine then I have Cooper and Clint!" Tony retorted. Pepper arched an eyebrow. "And Banner and Rogers."

Pepper faked mock offense. "Fine, I get Happy, Thor and the kids."

Blaine rolled his eyes at his ridiculous parents as they continued to bicker about who was in who's wedding party. It was silly and fun. It was everything Blaine wanted for his father. He snuggled back into the arm Pepper kept around his shoulders as the madness continued to escalate with the arrival of the rest of their extended family. There might have been a lot of craziness that led them to where they were today but Blaine knew it was worth it. Because no matter how much struggle they had to go through in the future, this would be one of the moments he would look back on and use to keep going. He would fight for everyone to be as happy as they were in this particular moment for as long as he lived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end for now. There will still be more fluff coming up because I honestly didn't intend to end it here. But I had to get this posted before Infinity Wars. So I hope that you enjoyed!


End file.
